Together: No Need to be Alone
by shaunna100
Summary: Sequel to Need. Bella and Edward's life seems to be complete. They have everything they could have ever dreamed of: children, a loving family, a nice home. But when difficult circumstances arise, will they be able to handle it?
1. Chapter 1: Together

"**Together: No Need to be Alone"**

**Chapter One**

"Happy birthday," I said as I leaned down to Mason's level and kissed his cheek. He was sitting in his high chair at the front of the table, blue and yellow frosting covering his face as his hands played with the cake that was on a plate in front of him. Today, Mason was one year old and the most beautiful toddler I have ever seen. His hair had grown a little longer, his face lost a little bit of the baby shape and replaced it was a more defined shape. His arms and legs stretched out a little and he lost a little bit of his cute baby face. He was so perfect.

No amount of words could describe the feeling a mother had for their child. And when that year comes, and they are no longer that little bundle of joy that they once were, you realize just how hard it is to be a parent. But Mason would always be my bundle of joy, and that was the way I liked it. He was just a momma's boy.

Being eight and a half month pregnant, it was surprisingly easy to get around. While pregnant with Mason, I waddled around with this awkward stance that made me feel like a whale. But now I walked like it wasn't a big deal, my feet just seemed to be floating on the ground. Of course I didn't get some of the usual symptoms of pregnancy (swollen feet, vomiting) but it did look like I shoved a beach ball under my shirt.

I didn't go to school. Not because I didn't want to, but because I just wanted to have an excuse to talk to Alyssa everyday for a few hours, five days a week. It gave me a chance to catch up on stuff I missed on the weekend, and I got to see Madison, who was two years old. As for Jacob, we spent some time together. I would call him or we would meet up at the park.

I was surprised with how Renee and my friends from Florida reacted to my new pregnancy. They were all shocked at first, which was to be expected, but after that, I received gifts in the mail for the new baby. And sometimes a scattered toy for Mason.

Right now, all the Cullen's were sitting at the large dining room table, looking up at Mason with large smiles on their faces. They showered him with love and presents, and acted as if he was their own. Especially Rosalie because Mason was unfourtantly as close as she would come to having a child.

"Do you like the cake, Mason?" Edward asked, scooping up some icing onto his finger and bringing it to Mason's mouth. He took all of the icing off and nodded vigorously.

"Cake!" he squealed. "Me like cake!"

I giggled and put my hand on my stomach. Edward and I decided not to find out the sex of the baby. That would just be one less surprise to have, and I liked the shock of either a boy or a girl.

Alice once asked me that if I could chose what I wanted to have, what would it be. Truth is, and I know how cliché this sounds, but as long as the baby comes out healthy and crying, it doesn't matter whether or not it's male or female.

When Mason was done, I took his plate and fork and brought it into the sink into the kitchen as the rest of the Cullen's chatted among themselves. I filled the large sink up with hot water and then began to wash.

I was just finishing up when I felt a pair of familiar hands wrap around my waist and softly caress my large stomach. Turning around, I laughed as Edward leaned down to kiss my collarbone.

"You're family is right around the corner," I said with a giggle, gently pushing him away. He chuckled deep throated and then resorted to snaking his arm around my waist and pulling me close. I put my head on his shoulder and closed my eyes.

"I wonder what it would be like to sleep," I said, remembering how nice it felt to crawl into my bed and close my eyes, dreaming about magical things and wishing they'd come true.

He kissed the top of my head. "It's fine, my love. You'll get over that want soon. We all went through it, trust me." His hand made its way down my stomach, and he ran his thumb lovingly over my ballooned stomach.

Edward was there for every single ultrasound, every single kick or twitch, and the entire baby shopping. Actually, we didn't have to do much shopping, considering Mason had most of the stuff we would need eventually. We just bought another crib and a load of diapers. Clothes shopping would be done after the birth.

Speaking of the birth, my due date was coming up at the end of June, and as each day went by and we got closer and close to meeting our new life, I got more and more anxious. And I could tell Edward was, too.

We walked back into the kitchen and sat at the dining room table with the rest of the Cullen's. Rosalie handed Mason to me, and I sat him on my lap.

"What's in mommy's tummy, Mason?" I asked, looking at him with a little smile. Mason put his small hand on my stomach and tapped lightly.

"Baby! Baby!"

Edward chuckled again. "And what do you want that baby to be?" he asked, rubbing the top of Mason's hand with his hand.

Mason thought for a moment, then through his hands in the air. "Sister!" he exclaimed. "Sister! Sister! Sister!"

I kissed his forehead and laughed lightly. Mason stayed on my lap for a while, and then I put him down on the floor and watched carefully as he crawled into the living room to play with the large set of blocks Esme and Carlisle had bought for him. To watch Mason go from a little tiny infant who depended on me and Edward for everything that he needed, to a little independent toddler who loved to roam. I was so glad to be able to witness that.

Mason often sat on my lap and rested his head on my swollen stomach, trying to sleep. Then the baby would kick, and Mason's head would shoot up, his eyes wide. It took a little while for me to explain that there was a little baby, just like him, inside of my stomach. I still don't think he fully understands, but he'll get it soon enough.

Now, Edward and I followed Mason into the living room and sat on the love seat, watching as he stacked the blocks on top of one another, then knocked them down, this goofy little grin on his face.

"Mason kwocked them all down!" he said as he pushed over another tower he had built as squealed in delight. "Wook what I did!"

"You're so silly," Edward said as he leaned over and poked Mason in the stomach lightly. Mason grabbed his stomach and laughed.

"Daddy, you silly!" he said, taking his little hand and putting it in Edward's knee. They locked eyes for a minute, and then Edward leaned down and kissed Mason's cheek. It was so amazing to watch Edward and Mason bond as father and son. It just made me feel like everything I had done by myself was worth it. But even if Edward wasn't in out lives right now, I would still think that it was all worth it. Just to be able to watch him strive and grow was enough to satisfy me. But of course having Edward there to help and watch with me was a plus.

"Momma," Mason said after a few minutes of playing with his blocks, "me sweepy now. Can you twuck me in?"

Edward stood up before I got a chance to answer and swiped Mason up in his arms. Mason immediately wrapped his arms around Edward's neck and put his head on his shoulder, closing his eyes and sucking is thumb. When Edward turned to walk up the stairs, I stood up in one fluid motion and followed him into Mason's room.

He lay Mason down in his crib, and Mason just continued to suck his thumb, his eyes closed. Edward pulled a fleece blanket up to the middle of his stomach and leaned down to kiss his cheek. When Edward turned around, he smiled at me and said, "We have that doctors appointment in half an hour. I thought maybe you could get something to drink before we went."

I still drank blood from a cup, mostly because going out and pouncing on animals wasn't a thing to do if you're pregnant, whether you were human or not. So Edward kept a fresh supply of blood in the kitchen, and whenever I felt thirsty, I just went tot he supply of blood and drank. When the baby was born, I would learn how to hunt the right way.

I hadn't expected to have a power. But my power to control myself and my thirst wasn't something I was going to complain about. It made my life as a vampire so much easier. I wasn't a blood thirsty newborn who had to watch themselves around humans for hundreds of years. Jasper was a newborn, and he had told me that controlling his thirst around humans was one of the hardest things he has ever had to do.

Taking the cup from Edward's hand, I put it to my lips and gulped down the thick, red liquid until the cup was empty. I licked my lips and then smiled at Edward, one hand on my stomach.

"The baby is kicking," I said as I felt a nudge in my abdomen. Edward reached his hand down and placed it just above my belly button. He waited a few seconds before the baby kicked his hand, causing his face to burst out into a grin.

"It's a fighter," he said with a chuckle. "A soccer played, maybe?"

I giggled and placed a hand on his chest. "We should probably leave now, you know."

We walked into the living room to see Esme and Carlisle sitting on the couch with Rose and Emmett sitting across from them. Alice and Jasper were no where in sight, so I figured that they must be out hunting or something like that.

"Carlisle," Edward said smoothly. "Bella and I are ready to go, if you are. We figured we could all ride in the same car."

Carlisle would do all my checkups and, yes, even the awkward stuff. But it was what needed to be done to assure that this baby would be born healthy and strong. No other doctors would know how to deal with a vampire giving birth to a half human, half vampire baby.

Right away, Carlisle nodded and jumped up off the couch. He leaned down and planted a sweet kiss on Esme's lips and then walked with us to his sleek, black car that still had the smell of new car and lemon. I got into the backseat and did up my belt, then waited as Edward got into the front seat and Carlisle in the passenger.

Then we drove off.

Edward drove a little slower than usual considering I was pregnant, which I found totally cute and so like Edward. He slowed down instead of sped up when coming up to a yellow light, he made sure to drive the sped limit, if not lower. All the while we drove, I couldn't help but have a little smile on my face at the way he was acting.

It was about five in the evening, and the hospital was packed with people visiting their friends or relatives who were sick. Edward parked in Carlisle's reserved parking space that was near the end of the building, and instead of entering through the main doors, we entered through the back door where a large sign with neon letters read "Staff Only".

I held Edward's hand as we walked down the long, narrow hallway and up an elevator. When we finally got to Carlisle's office, I grabbed my gown from this little closet and headed into the back door to change.

Thankfully, the gown wasn't opened in the back, revealing to the world something that should only be revealed to certain people. Then I walked out from behind the curtain and hoped onto the cot and waited for Carlisle to come over.

"Half a month until full term," Edward said, his voice holding shock and disbelief. "We're getting so close."

Edward stayed at my head as I put my legs up on the stirrups. Carlisle prepped whatever instruments he would be using as I just sat there, waiting for this to be over with. When Carlisle finally began to examine me, I closed my eyes and tried to picture someone other than Carlisle. It was just awkward having Carlisle do all this stuff. He was like a second father to me, and the grandfather of my son and unborn child.

After a few moments of the examination, Carlisle clucked his tongue on the roof of his mouth. "Interesting," he said with a slight smile.

"What?" I said, my eyes budging just a little.

Carlisle turned to face me now. "You are three centimeters dilated."

**--**

**A/N- SURPRISE! So, I know I told you all that I would be posting this chapter on Monday. But I wrote a lot very quickly, so I decided to post tonight instead of Monday. Hope you like it!**

**So, this is the sequel to "Need" which was the sequel to "Alone". If you are just finding this story, go read "Alone" first, and then "Need".**

"**Together" was said a lot, but one reviewer (ihearttwilight3254) said that it should be called ""No Need to be Alone". Since the majority of the people said "Together" and I really like "No Need to be Alone" I decided to combine them. Thanks to these people: ggrocks1800, edwardOobession, bamcneal831, ciera1, ninachr, 04williamsl, Candy- Kane15, Cinnamint Kitty, moonbeam2830, MyOwnCrystalHeart, kimbella, and latuacantante4him. Thank so much you guys!**


	2. Chapter 2: New Baby

**Chapter Two**

Edward and I decided from an early stage that we were going to have a home birth. So after Carlisle examined me and determined that I as soon as I hit four centimeters dilated, I would be in labor, we headed back home to the mansion. Of course, it wouldn't hurt as much as it did with Mason, but there would be some degree of pain that I would go through. But nothing could be worse than the pain of changing. That brought some comfort to me.

When we opened the door, the whole family was circled around us, waiting to hear some news and see the pictures of the baby. I had nothing in my hands; neither did Edward or Carlisle, and when they saw his, their faces dropped.

"You didn't get any pictures?" Rosalie asked, a frown making its way upon her beautiful red lips. "You promised up pictures."

"Rosalie," I heard Carlisle say. "I want you to go upstairs to the spare room and change the sheets on the bed. There should be some sheets with one side that it plastic in the hall closet- use them. Bella will be up shortly, as she should be going into labor within the next hour or so."

Everyone's jaw dropped, and before I had a chance to say anything, Rosalie had disappeared up the stairs, Alice hot on her heels, wanting to help. I bit my lip and gripped my stomach, caressing it softly. Emmett walked over to me then, and leaned down to hug me, and then back up to hug Edward.

"Are you ready for this, bro?" he asked, giving Edward a playful nudge on the shoulder. Edward chuckles and poked his bulging biceps.

"Ready as I'll ever be." He reached down and intertwined our fingers together. It was then that I felt this awkward pain in my stomach that made me scrunch my face. It was in the same place where I had felt the contractions with Mason- just below my bellybutton.

"Bella," I heard Edward say. "Are you alright? Are you okay?"

I bit my lip a little harder and closed my eyes. "Contractions. Can I go upstairs?"

Edward nodded and put his hand on the small of my back, leading me towards the stairs. "Rosalie and Alice should be done making the bed now."

And they were. When we walked into the spare bedroom, with its walls so rosy pink and calming, Rosalie and Alice quickly pulled back the sheets and fluffed the pillows as Edward helped lay me down in bed. It wasn't that I really needed his help, but if it made him feel a little better, then so be it.

"Can I get you anything?" Edward asked in a silky, seductive voice as I lay in bed, my head propped up on pillows, my hands on my stomach. I thought for a minute before nodding my head.

"Blood," I stated. "I feed very thirsty." Carlisle had said that this was going to happen while I entered the first stage of labor. My body was working hard to make sure the baby was strong and prepared enough to be delivered, therefore taking all the energy I maintained from the blood to help the baby.

The dry itch in my throat worsened as Edward went downstairs to get me some blood. It was like an aching pain that burned the lining of my throat, making it throb and itch until it was quenched.

When Edward returned with two large glasses of hot, fresh blood, I felt the venom in my mouth double, and I swallowed it back as I reached for the glass and thanked Edward for being so kind.

The blood was runny, yet thick as it made its way down my throat, quenching the burn that was once there. I chugged both glasses, then looked at Edward and said, "Thanks. That was just what I needed. I feel much better now."

"I'm glad you're feeling better," he said as he crawled onto the bed and lay down next to me. "The time's getting close."

"It won't be long now," I told him, just as he brought his hand to rest on my stomach. "I wasn't in labor with Mason for very long- just a few hours."

He closed his eyes and sighed. "I still can't believe I missed it. What am I suppose to tell him when he gets older? That I abandoned his mother to deal with school, pregnancy, and child birth by herself?"

I ran my hand through his bronze hair. "Don't worry about it. Mason loves you, and he'll understand your reason for leaving. It was to save me. If you hadn't of left, there is a great chance that myself and Mason wouldn't be here right now."

He looked up at me, his eyes serious. "I made the choice's I made for a reason. To protect- like you said. I love you too much to let anything bad ever happen to you."

Another contraction hit, and I crumpled my face. The pain wasn't unbearable, but it pinched and twisted my insides. I tried to do what I had done while in labor with Mason- breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth. But I didn't need to breathe, so it didn't help and my idea was short lived.

"Should I get Carlisle?" Edward was on his feet now, his thumb pointing towards the door. But before I had the chance to answer, he was gone out the door.

Only a few short seconds later, Edward was standing with Carlisle at the foot of my bed. Carlisle held a blue gown in his hands, and I immediately recognized it as the same kind of gown that they had at the hospital. He looked at me, and when I didn't say anything, he handed the gown to Edward and sat on the bed.

"Are you feeling alright?" he asked as he pat my leg with his hand.

I rubbed my swollen stomach. "Fine. Contraction pains every now and then. But they don't last long. Just a couple minutes, and they aren't nearly as powerful as before."

"Okay. Well, I want you to get out of your clothes and put this gown on. I'm going to examine you and see how many more centimeters you've become dilated. Your progress will go much more faster this time around, so I'm expecting to deliver this baby tonight."

I gulped.

I wasn't really that surprised because I know it was bound to happen sooner or later. But being here and having Carlisle confirm it made it real, and almost made me anxious to have this baby out into the world and into my arms.

"I'll wait out by the door and let you change," he said. "Edward, can I talk to you?" Edward nodded and then smiled at me before following Carlisle out the door, closing it behind them. I got off the bed and grabbed the gown, then took off my shirt and jeans and underwear, and put them all in the hamper. Then I put the gown on and got back in bed.

Edward walked in first with Carlisle hot on his heels. "Alice and Rose called your dad. He's going to run by the diner and get something to eat, then come here and wait downstairs with the rest of us."

I nodded briskly. "Sounds good."

Carlisle examined me after that, and after a few minutes he came to the conclusion that I was about nine centimeters dilated. I was progressing very quickly now, much quicker than before. It wouldn't be too long now and I would have my new, beautiful baby girl or boy in my arms.

"Okay, Bella, this baby wants out now. Can you get ready to push?" Carlisle asked. I nodded and looked at Edward, who was standing up next to me, holding my hand. I looked at Carlisle, waiting for him to count to three, and when he did, I bared down with all my energy (which was a lot) and pushed. It wasn't as painful, but there was still this awkward burn.

"Good, Bella. Can you do that again for me?" Carlisle asked.

I pushed again.

"You're doing so well, love."

"The baby's crowning," I heard Carlisle say. "And again, Bella. Come on, another big push!"

I pushed.

And I pushed again.

And again.

And then finally, the cries of a newborn baby filled the air.

"It's a boy!" I heard Carlisle say as he took the liquid out of the baby's mouth with a blue suction device. I threw my head back on the pillow and closed my eyes, a large grin spreading upon my lips as I waited for Carlisle to wrap the baby.

"A boy…" Edward said, his voice holding love and admiration. It was then that Carlisle handed a small bundle into my arms, and I looked at the baby's face with a grin. He has dark hair, like mine, and his eyes were brown, like mine. I leaned down and kissed his delicate little forehead, and I knew that if I were able to cry, tears would be flowing down my cheeks like a rabid waterfall.

Edward ran his finger over the baby's hair. "That was… the most extraordinary thing I have ever witnessed. He's beautiful, Bella. He's got your eyes, you know."

I was going to answer, but the sound of Carlisle's voice cut me short. "And what will you be naming him?" he asked with a smile, holding a clipboard and pen in front of him.

I looked down at the baby, then back up at Carlisle. "His name is Parker Bentley Cullen."

**--**

**A/N- Here you go! I don't really know how I feel about this chapter… I'm happy because they have the baby, but kind of mad at myself for making it go by so quickly. Oh, and what do you think of the baby's name and gender? I hope you like it! Feel free to PM me! Please review!**


	3. Chapter 3: Old Friend

**Chapter Three**

The first person to see Parker was Mason. He didn't really understand that Parker was very deicate, and therefore was a little rough until Edward and I told him to be careful around his new brother. He would just smile and nod, still not understanding fully.

Edward and I had decided on the name Parker Bentley Cullen during my seventh month of pregnancy. Parker was the name of Edward's grandfather, who he had loved dearly but died when he was fourteen. Bentley was the name of my grandfather, who died of brain cancer when I was seven. When we thought of those names and put them togetether, we knew we had the perfect name if the baby was boy.

I didn't feel exhausted after the birth, which was an incredibly good thing. I would get out of bed and go downstairs to mingle with everyone, but Charlie still thinks that I'm human, so that wasn't such a good idea. So I stayed in bed, and everyone came to me.

"Charlie's downstairs," Edward said as he rocked Parker with on arm, Mason on his lap with his head resting on Edward's shoulder. "Want me to go get him?"

I nodded eagerly as Edward placed a sleeping Parker into my arms. He then got up off the bed, Mason on his hip, and walked out of the room. I just smiled and looked down at Parker, who was now nuzzled into my cold body. It was so surreal that he was already here in my arms after such a short period of time. It was like on minute everything was as normal as they could be, and the next I suddenly have another little boy brought into this world.

"Bella," I heard a familiar voice say from the door, making my look up, my eyes wide with shock, as Renee and Charlie stood in the doorframe with smiled on their faces.

"Mom," I said slowly, drawing out the word, as Renee came over and sat on the egde of the bed, Charlie right behind her. Her eyes wondered down to Parker as she took her hand and gingerly ran his along his small cheek. He opened his eyes and yawned, and I couldn't help but let a small giggle escape my lips. "What are you doing here?"

She reached over and grabbed my hand. "You thought I was going to miss seeing another one of my grandchildren? As soon as Charlie called me, I got on the first flight I could get. It wasn't easy to get here so soon, but a little debating can get you anywhere."

I laughed lightly and looked up to see Charlie. "Thanks for coming, Dad," I state softly.

He grinned, the wrinkles around his eyes becoming more prominent. "Like your mom said, I wasn't going to miss it. Plus, I haven't seen Mason in such a long time."

"Speaking of Mason," Renee said. "I don't know what you're feeding him, but it vocabulary is amazing. Full sentances at one? You guys must be doing something right. You weren't talking like that until you were at least two."

I gulped, but forced a smile. That was another trait of Mason being half vampire, half human. His brain was processing much faster than that of a normal one year old, therefore makng him able to form and speak larger sentances. His brain age was that of a two and a half year old, but he was only looked the same as a one year old. Carlisle had said that by the time Mason turns two, his brain age will start to slow down a little, and by the time he's five, his brain with be the same as a five year old. One he hits puberty when he is around 12 or so, the brain will start to age again, but stop when he's seventeen. He'll still be able to learn new things, but he will be much more advanced than someone else his age.

We would hope this wouldn't make anyone suspect that anything was going on. As Mason gets older, we will teach him to stay at the level of someone else his age, even if he may be years advanced. That's the one way that we can think of that keeps Mason looking like a totally normal child, instead of one with a father that you only see in books.

"He's beautiful," she said to be with a smile, looking down at Parker. "He looks a lot like you, Bells. He's got your hair and eyes." I looked back down at Parker with his dark brown eyes and hair, so happy that he was here and healthy and beautiful. It was like we had the perfect match; Mason with his auburn hair and bright green eyes, and then Parker, whose eye's and hair resembled mine.

I passed Parker to Renee, who held him closly and swayed gently back and forth. She smiled and then looked up at me, then back down to Parker who was still wide awake in her arms. He stayed there for a few minutes before Renee passed him to Charlie, who was a little hesitant at first, but after looking at me and seeing me smile, took him into his arms and held him close.

It was like this for a while, with just me and Charlie and Renee and Parker all in that large, dim pink room, just spending a little time together. When Edward came up, Charlie and Renee both excused themselves and made their way downstairs as Edward took Parker from arms and changed his diaper.

I quickly got dressed into a pair of loose sweat pants and an over-sized all black shirt. When I got out of bed, I practised breathing, so that Charlie and Renee wouldn't notice anything wierd and question it. So after I got into a steady beat of breathing, I headed downstairs, a slight wobble in my step as I went. It made me seem more like a person who gave birth only hours ago, rather than a tough immortal vampire who was already fully healed.

Everyone was standing around and mingling as Mason was playing with his blocks again. As soon as I resched the bottom of the stairs, every eye in the room was on mine. I gave a smile and waved, then let a small giggle bubble up from my lips before continuing down the stairs and stopping to stand by Edward, who was holding Parker, how was wrapped up so tiny in a blanket.

Renee walked over to me, Mason now in her arms with a block in his hand, studying it intently. "How are you feeling?" she asked, her motherly tone taking over.

I shrugged. "Good," I lied. Truth was, I felt totally amazing and normal. Well, I mean, as normal as a blood thirsty newborn vampire could be, I guess. "Just feeling a little pain and such. But nothing too bad. I took some advil, so Carlisle said that should help a little."

It was then that Mason stretched his little arms out towards me, a huge smile planted on his beautiful face. I smiled brightly and took him from Renee, then brang him close to my chest and kissed the top of his head. He put his head on my shoulder and wrapped his arms tightly around my neck. I swayed back and forth.

"I'm leaving in four days," Renee said after a moment. "I've got to be back for when Phil comes back from Alaska. He was there for the last week playing ball. I really wish I could stay longer..."

I shook my head. "It's fine. You'll be updated often, don't worry. I know it's difficult to come down a lot, but I understand." I gave a smile that told her that I was serious, and she just nodded and kissed my cheek before turning back and sitting on the couch with Esme.

--

It had been two days since Parker was born, and already I was noticing differences with him and Mason. Mason is more of a laid back baby who sleeps a lot and doesn't really cry unless he wants something really baby. But Parker... well, he cries whenever her darn well feels like it, and if you don't go what he wants right away, then you better be prepared for a screaming fight. But that was fine- he was beautiful and healthy, and that was all I could ever ask for.

Charlie came over during the evening's, and Renee was over during the afternoon. They were both great help with Mason and Parker, and I will be forever greatful for them and their support. Not many parents are supportive of their child after having on child as a teenager, let alone two of them. But both of my parents were wonderful support, and I knew I could go to each of them for anything at all.

Now, it was about three- twenty in the morning on a Friday. Edward and I were cuddled on the couch together, watching re- runs of old sitcoms and talking amoung ourselves as the rest of the world slept soundly. The rest of the family was dispersed around the house while Esme and Carlisle were out hunting. I still hadn't officaly went hunting yet, because Carlisle wants me to take it easy for a while before doing anything like that. So Carlisle would manage, somehow, to get fresh blood for me every now and then.

Edward had just changed the channel when we heard Parker cry from upstairs. And almost immediatly after, Mason's cried filled the air, too. That was probably the only downside of Mason and Parker sharing a room- when one wakes up, so does the other. But Edward and I didn't really mind, we just looked at each other and rolled our eyes playfully.

"My turn," I said, jumping off the couch and dashing to the stairs. When I got to the bottom of them, I turned to Edward. "I'll be back down soon."

He nodded and then I turned and dashed up the stairs and made my way to the light blue room that Edward had set out for Mason and Parker to share. We left the nursery the same, just added in another crib. I went over to Mason's crib right away and scooped him up in my arms, resting him on my hip, then walked over to Parker and looked down to his red, crying face.

I put my hand on his stomach and rubbed it soothingly. Mason was crying, and I knew that if I was human, I would have such a bad headache at this moment. But I just ignored it and bounced Mason, all the while trying to calm down Mason, with no such luck.

"Need some help?" I turned to see Jasper standing in the doorway, this goofy grin planted on his face. His blonde hair was as perfect as always, and he was wearing a green polo and jeans. When he saw the look on my face, which was a mixture of happy and confused, he chuckles. "I'll take that as a yes." He walked to me with his arms extended, beckoning for me to place a crying Mason into his arms. I obliged, and then reached down and scooped Parker into my arms, placing him in my arms so his head was resting on my shoulder and I was holding his little body securely in my grasp.

Almost automatically Mason's cried turned into soft murmers. Jasper focused on rocking him in his arms as I took Mason to the change table to change his diaper. I quickly did what I did best, and in a matter of two minutes, Parker was freshened up. I turned back to Jasper, who was still bouncing Mason, who was calmed down now, and said, "Thanks, Jasper."

Jasper chuckled deep throatedly, and shrugged. "It's not a problem. Mason here," he said as he bounced him gently, "is a good baby."

I smiled as I held tiny, delicate little Parker in my hands. It was at that moment that Edward apporached from behind the closed door.

"Hey there," he said smoothly. "I just thought's I'd come up here and see if you needed any help. But it looks like you both got it under control." He laughed lightly, and patted Jasper back. "Thanks, man."

Again, Jasper shrugged. "Not a problem. Alice was in the shower, so I figured I'd come see if Bella wanted a hand with Mason or Parker."

As vampires, we didn't really need to take showers. But it's something that makes a feel clean, even iif we weren't really dirty to begin with. And the alone time was nice -it gave you time to think or clear your head of any troubling thoughts. Plus, it just helped my stress (which was a lot with two screaming babies) melt away.

When Mason saw that Edward was standing next to him, he automatically reached his hands out towrds him. Both Edward and Jasper laughed, then Jasper handed Mason to Edward's outstretched hands. Edward placed him on his hip, and Mason's head went down on his shoulder.

"Me too warm, Daddy," Mason said with a yawn. "Daddy nice and cold. I like it."

I laughed lightly, rocking Parker. "Want to go back in your bed?" I asked, referring to his crib.

He shook his head. "No, me wanna stay with Mommy and Daddy and Parkwer." He gripped onto Edward's a shirt, a sigh, which we realized since he was about ten months old, meant he wasn't going to budge. "Me no like my bed. Me like Daddy."

I looked at Edward, who shrugged his shoulders and shook hiis head, a smile perched on his oh- so- perfect lips. "Let's go downstairs and get some bottles ready. That way, hopefully they will fall asleep while we finish watching some TV."

Mason shook his head. "Me is not going to sleep."

Edward laughed and turned to walk out the door, me following his trails. "That what you think," he said.

We went into the kitchen to see Rosalie and Emmett standing in front of each other. From what I could see, Rosalie was using dramatic hand gestures and Emmett had a scowl on his face. That could only mean one thing- they were fighting. They don't usually fight very often, but when then do, you know it's got to be serious. So Edward and I turned our backs slowly, trying to make sure they didn't see us, and just as we were out of sight, we heard Emmett say, "No, Rosalie. I don't understand._ Enlighten_ me, please."

"Don't act like you don't feel it, too," she said, her voice surprisinly just above a whisper. I looked at Edward, and I could tell by the look in his eyes that he knew what we were doing was wrong, but at the same time, he was just as curious as I was.

"I do feel it, Rosalie. But there isn't anything I can do about it. If there was something I could do about it, I would. But there isn't, so I can't. You need to stop thinking so lowly of yourself and get a grip. I love you, and I want to give you a family, but I can't, because you and I both know so well that it's impossible. One minute you act like you are fine with it, especially after you and Bella have a little talk. And then the next... it's like you're blaming me."

I knew she was talking about having and wanting a family. And I knew how much she wanted to have someone, a little bundle of joy to call her own, to love. But I also knew that was impossible, that it wasn't going to happen unless some sort of miracle overcame them both. And that wasn't going to happen.

"I'm not blaming you Emmett, but-"

"Rosalie!" Emmett's voice was harsh, then got soft again. "I'm sorry. We've been on the adoption list for a long time. A really long time. And no one is going to give a baby to two teenagers with no experiance."

"I know, but it's so hard to come to terms with. We've been waiting for fifty years, Emmett. Fifty years. We've taken our names on and off lists all the time so peope wouldn't suspect anything. We do our best to procieve ourselfs as mature and responsible teenagers every single time we've walked into that adoption agency. I've held my head up high for much to long. I've been waiting for much to long. And I can't do it anymore."

I looked up at Edward and mouthed, "Adpotion?"

He just shrugged, and then straightened up, looking down at me and mouthing, "Follow me. And follow my lead."

He marched into the kitchen and pretended, for a moment, that he didn't see Rose or Emmett standing in the far corner of the large kitchen. Then he turned and saw them, and said, "Oh, hey guys."

Emmett smiled, but I could tell it was fake. And Rose, well, she just scowled, and I felt so bad for her. Why did she have to go through this? Why her? Why did the one thing she wanted so badly in life be taken away from her, when I got it, even when it didn't matter to me if I did or not?

"Hey, Rose," I said as cheerfull as I could be at this moment, knowing that inside she was hurting.

"Hi," she said back, and forced a fake smile.

I wanted to tell her that she shouldn't give up on her dreams to adopt a baby. But at the same time, I wanted her to understand that Emmett wanted it just as much as she did.

"We just needed to fix some bottles for the babies," Edward said, reaching up into the cupboard and pulling down two bottles, a pot, and the baby formula. He filled the pot with water and put it on the stove, then proceeded to mix the baby formula with water in the bottle.

"Here, put these in the pot," he told me, handing me the bottle. I took them and dropped them slowly into the almost- boiling water to heat up.

When I turned back, Rosalie was looking at the floor, her hands interlocked togetether. "Wa-" I started to say, but she cut me off.

"I have to go." And with that, she burst through the back doors and before any of us got a chance to call after her or do anything, Emmett was following behind her. I turned to look at Edward, my face still.

When they were both somewhere in the woods behind the house, I turned to Edward. "What was that about?"

"I don't know how I never suspected anything... They hid their thoughts so well," he said softly, looking at the pot on the stove, his mind, occupied.

I frowned. "I feel so bad for them."

Edward nodded, meeting my gaze. "Rosalie's never been complete. She'll never be complete without a child."

"I feel bad. I mean, we have two beautiful little boys... and we didn't even ask for them. Though, it doesn't make us love them any less, obviously." I paused. "Rosalie's wanted a baby for so, so long and she can't have one no  
matter how hard she and Emmett try."

Edward nodded. "Bella, stop worrying about things that are out of your hands. Out of their hands too as a matter of fact."

I sighed. "I suppose you're right."

"I feel bad for them too, you know. I just... I've realized that it's not my responsibility to get Rosalie through it. Give her the closure she so desperately needs. Not like she would accept it, anyways. Emmett helps her as much as he can and she knows that as much as she gets upset, worked up and mad with him at times, they both love each other and they'll get through it day by day with each other. She may never get a sense of closure, but without Emmett she knows she would be a lot worse off."

I nodded, understanding where he was coming from. "Yeah..."

He smiled softly at me, cupping my cheek in his hand, running his index finger over my cheek as he brought his lips to mine genly. I closed my eyes and let myself fall into the moment, even if it was just for a few seconds, before Parker started to whine.

"Someone wants his bottle _now_," Edwars said, switching Mason over to his other hip. "Do you want a bottle too, Mason?"

Mason nodded his head up and down vicorisly, a huge smile on his sweet face. Edward took one bottle out from the water and wiped it dry on it shirt, then handed it to Mason. Mason put it to his mouth automaticly, and Edward passed me the other bottle for Parker.

We went back out into the living room and settled into the couch. Mason was sitting on Edward's lap, facing the TV and drinking his bottle. Parker was in my arms, so tiny and cute, sucking away to get all the nutrients the bottle provided.

"I don't feel good about snooping on Rose and Emmett like that," I said suddenly.

"I don't either, but as long as we don't tell either of them what we heard, they will never know." He looked at me, his eyes telling me that he was serious, even though I never doubted for a minute that he didn't mean what he was saying.

I sighed, shaking my head and turning to look at Parker in my arms. "I still can't believe they didn't mention anything after fifty years. Fifty years, Edward! That's much too long to keep such a big secret."

He shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. But I think we should drop it, just for tonight. I kind of want to relax, and not have to worry about it."

"I agree," I said to him with a nod. Then, to distract myself, I looked at Mason and said, "Hey, are you tired now or what?" Then I giggled and poked him in the stomach lightly.

He shook his head and wiggled out of Edward's arms, going down onto the floor and crawling over to his mountain of toys and grabbing a plastic toy truck. Then he sat down on the floor with the truck on front of him, and looked up at Edward and I. "Pway with me, please."

And I couldn't help but smile.

--

Both Rosalie nor Emmett returned that night, or the next afternoon. None of us were overly worried- they'd probably gone hunting. But then again, no one had known their reason for leaving. No one except myself and Edward, who weren't about to say anything any time soon. That was a private matter, something to be discussed between Rosalie and Emmett. We hadn't had any buisness knowing about it in the first place.

I still felt bad for Rose and wanted to do something to help her, but like Edward told me many times, there was nothing I could do to help her. She would, eventually, come to terms with her terrible fate of not being able to concieve or bare a child. Then I think about all the woman casually aborting fetuses because they can't deal with a baby, or don't have the love and support that they wished for, and get mad. Rose would die for one of those babies.

Shaking my head of all those thoughts, I went downstairs after taking a quick shower to feel refreshed to see Edward in the living room with Parker and Mason. Parker was in his bouncy chair asleep, and Mason was on the floor with some blocks and plastic trucks as Edward tested out a bottle on his wrist.

"Bella," he said, rubbing the milk off his wrist, "can you come test this out? I don't know if it's too hot or too cold." He extended the bottle towards me, and I took it. I put a few drops onto my wrist, determining that it was just the right temperature before handing it back.

"Just right," I told him, watching as he walked over and gave the bottle to Mason, who took it from his hands and began to drink. "Have you heard from Rose or Emmett?"

He walked over to me, placing both his cold hands onto my shoulder and rubbing them gently. "No, but they're fine. They should be home shortly."

I nodded, and looked at Parker. "How long as he been asleep?"

Edward shrugged. "About twenty minutes, I guess. He went to sleep just as you were getting in the shower, so not very long."

I nodded, and just as I was going to lean up to kiss him, a knock on the door made me stop. I looked in the direction of the door, then looked back up at Edward. "Must be Rose and Emmett," I said, starting to make my way towards the door. I turned back, just in time to see Edward shake his head.

"No, they wouldn't knock."

I opened the door, and a petite, strawberry blonde who I didn't know stepped inside, her eyes glued onto Edward's.

"Hello, Edward," she said, her voice so beautiful I knew she had to be a vampire.

"Hi, Tanya."

--

**A/N- Here is chapter three! I really hope you guys like it! But I need your help! I need some good ideas for future plot of this story. So I would really appreciate it if you could PM with some ideas! They will help me a lot! Oh, and Please review!**


	4. Chapter 4: Old Friends and Phone Calls

**Chapter Four**

I looked at Edward, my finger pointing at Tanya. "You know her?" It came out more like an acussation then a question.

Edward didn't look at me. He just rocked back and forth on his heels, his eyes on Tanya, with her blonde hair and gold eyes, dressed in a pair of dark wash jeans and a mint green blouse. Her golden eyes told me she was a vegeterian vampire, just like the Cullen's.

"Yeah, I know her," Edward said, still looking at her.

"Nice to see you again, Edward," Tanya said, flicking her blonde hair behind her shoulders and smiling at Edward. Then Carlisle and Esme came around the corner, and locked Tanya into a hug.

"Oh, Tanya, it's been so long!" Esme gushed, stepping back from Tanya and looking at her up and down. "You look amazing!"

Tanya laughed a niice, bubbly laugh. "Same as twenty years ago, Esme. And you look dashing yourself." Then she looked over at Carlisle and grinned. "It's nice to see you again, Carlisle."

"You, too," he said with a grin. "Would you like to come in? We have some catching up to do. Two decades it a long time to be away from such a beloved friend."

Tanya nodded enthusiasticly and walked past Edward, bumping into his shoulder and smirking when he turned to her. I gritted my teeth and her, and followed them into the living room where Tanya had taken a spot on the chair across from the couch where Esme and Carlisle were sitting.

Edward stood in the foyer, and I stood there next to him. He laced his arm around my waist, and that made some of then tension I was feeling dissapeared, knowing that Edward was acknowlaging me.

Tanys turned towards Edward and I, the smile she had on her face from talking to Esme and Carlisle dissapearing when she glanced down and saw Edward's hand on my waist. What was her problem?

"You didn't tell me you had a girlfriend," she states flatly, still looking my Edward's hand on my side. When no one said anything, she looked at Edward. "You didn't really seem like the boyfriend type."

Edward stiffened when she said this, and with a low voice he said, "It just shows how much you know me."

I wanted to ask what the hell was doing on. I wanted to know what Tany's problem was with Edward, and vice versa. There was something, and I don't know what something is, that went on between the two of them in the past. I didn't like to be in a room where everyone knows about something and you don't- it fustrates me beyond no end.

I had just taken Edward's hand and sat on the couch when Parker's cried burst through the room.

"I'll go," Edward said when I tried to stand. He stood and passed by Tanya, her head turning to follow Edward as he walked by.

"I didn't know you had a baby," Tanya said, turning her attention back to me. "It must be difficult for Edward to deal with a baby that isn't his."

"Actually, Tanya-" Carlisle started to say.

I cut him off with, "They're Edward's children, too, _thanks." _I said the last word with spite, my eyes narrowing down to slits as I looked at the shocked expression on her face. Her mouth was opened, as if at any moment she was going to object, but Edward came downstairs with Mason on his hip and Parker in his arms.

"Tanya," Esme said, standing up and going over to Edward, taking Mason from him and turning back to face the blonde, "this is my Grandson Mason." Then she looked at Mason. "Can you say hi to Tanya?"

Mason burried his face into her shoulder. "Grandma..."

She laughed and then looked back up at Tanya. "He's a little shy," she told her with a beautiful smile.

Tanya still looked confused. "But..."

"And this is our other Grandson Parker, who was born four days ago." She gestured to Parker in Edward's arms, dressed in a little blue onsie and sucking on a pacifier.

Tanya shook her head slowly. "That's not possible..." She pointed at, her eyes scanning over my entire body. "She's a vampire. It's impossible."

"Bella became pregnant with Mason while she was still human, and gave birth to him as a human, as well. She concieved Parker as a human, but due to some horrible circumstances, she needed to be changed into a vampire, or she and the baby would have died. Miraciously, the baby survived the change, and Bella's body, depsite being in a vampire form, expanded to grow with the baby. She gave birth to him normally, as well."

She gulped, and looked at Edward, her eyes glistening in the light from overhead. "I'm happpy for you both." But even as she said that, with a smile plastered on her pale face, I could tell, just by the way she looked at him, that she wasn't really all that happy.

"Oh, Tanya, let Carlisle and I give you a tour of the house!" Esme exclaimed excidedly, wanting to show Tanya one of her many homes. "The guest room is this beautiful coral color, and I know you'll just love it! Oh, are you planning to stay?" Esme stopped before reaching the stairs, and turned to face Tanya.

Tanya looked back at myself and Edward, then back at Esme. "For as long as I'm welcome," she said, making Esme grin in excitment.

She took Tanya's hand and took her upstairs, talking to her all the while. When I knew that they were upstairs, I said to Edward in a voice so low, I knew only he could hear me. "What was that about?"

He put his free hand on my shoulder and nudged me further into the living room. "Tanya and her family live in Denali, Alaska. We lived there for a couple years a while ago. Our family became very close to Tanya and her "family". They are the only other vegeterian vammpires that we know of." He turned towards the stairs, making sure no one was coming down. "Tanya is... a complex person."

"She likes you."

He turned to me and blinked several times. "Yeah, and I don't think she's happy about us being together. But we are, and she's going to ahve to get over it. It's been a long time since I told her the feeling wasn't mutual."

"The way she looked at you-"

He pressed a cold finger to my mouth. "I know. But that's just Tanya- all flirty and obscure."

I furrowed my eyebrows. Was she really going to stay here, in the same house as myself and Edward? I don't know how I really felt about that... but my gut feeling was telling me it wasn't a good thing.

"Don't worry about Tanya," he said suddenly, reaching down to grasp my hand into hsi larger one. I felt safe in his arms, even though it wasn't like anything could bring me down. "Let's go get Parker a bottle."

I nodded and followed him into the kitchen. Into the fridge, in the very back, were several bottles of elk blood that Carlisle had managed to get for Parker. With Parker, we switched back and forth from milk and blood, as Carlisle said that will make him stronger and help fight off any infections. Edward grabbed a bottle and put it in the mircrowave. I could see the blood begin to sizzle and pop as it heated, and I liked my lips. I would have to get something to drink soon. Then when it was done, Edward took it out and shook it, making sure that it was evenly heated. After testing a drop on his wrist, he began to feed Parker.

It was wierd watching Parker drink blood. To me, blood was a tasty and enjoyable thing. But there is something that looks so wrong about a baby drinking bloodm whether he needs it or not, that it just a little disturbing. I mean, who wants to watch their child drink blood? Not me.

Mason still drank milk and only milk, and only because he is more human than Parker is. But there was this one time when Edward had Parker perched up, feeding him a bottle, when all of a sudden Mason said he wanted to try some, that it smelt good. At first, we didn't know what to say, so we just told him that blood was for when he got older. We explained to him that Parker needed it a lot more than he did, and it was left alone at that. Now at least we knew he vampire senses were growing.

Parker finished his bottle in under five minutes, and when he was done and Edward rinsed out his bottle, Tanya and Esme -who was still holding Mason- entered the kitchen.

Tanya looked at me, then Edward, then Parker. "What a cute little boy. May I hold him?" She opened her arms, and I was about to do something, but in and say no, but Edward put his hand on my chest, telling me not to say anything.

Then he said, "Of course." He handed Parker to Tanya, who took him into her arms and held him close to her chest.

"He's so beautiful," she said, then looked up at Edward. "He looks a lot like you."

"Really?" I asked, my eyes cold. "Mason looks a lot like Edward, everyone thinks. Parker looks a lot like me with his _brown_ hair and _brown_ eyes. I am, after all, his _mother_."

She looked down at Parker and scrunched her face. "I don't see it."

I gritted my teeth. "Look harder."

She just rocked him back and forth, touching his little face with her long, pointy finger. I don't know why, but I wasn't comfortable wit her holding Parker. So I reached out, and said, "I think I need to change his diaper." And I didn't even give her time to responde before I gently grabbed him for her grasp and hurried up out of the kitchen and up the stairs. I didn't bother to turn around and stop for Edward, even though I knew he was right on my heels. Instead, I walked into the babies nursery and placed him on the chaning table.

"I don't know why, but I really don't like her," I said to him, hurrying to take off Parker's diaper.

"You don't know her, Bella," Edward said, making me whip my head around to face him, one hand left on Parker's stomach so he didn't fall of the table. When Edward saw my expression, he quickly added, "You'll get to know her, and then she won't seem that bad."

Was that suppose to make me feel better?

It didn't.

I turned and finished changing Parker's diapers, then dressed him back into a nice green onsie. Then I picked up and brang him up to me so that his head was resting on my shoulder.

"Sure, I'll get to know her." I faked a smile, only because I didn't want to seem like a total bitch at this moment. I handed Parker over to Mason. "We are out of diapers. I'm going to go to the store and pick up a few things."

Edward nodded, and I zoomed past him at my top speed and went down to the porch, grabbed the keys to his silver Volvo, and then headed out to his car. It was cold out, but I didn't really feel the temperature, considering it was warmer, much warmer, then my skin temperature. I got into the car, and it purred to life, making it easy for me to drive to the local market.

I tapped my fingers on the steering wheele as I listened to the CD of classical music Edward had in the player. Claire De Lune was just finishing when I pulled into the store and got out, closing the door and then walking at normal pace into the store.

I immediatly went to the baby isle- an isle that I had become very familiar with over the last year- and grabbed three packs, a can of baby formula, and two new pacifiers. Then, with all that balancing in my arms, I went over to the cash.

A young man by the name of Erik served me. When he was done, I handed him a hundred dollar bill. He gave me a wierd look before giving me back the right change, and telling me, whether he meant it or not, to have a good day. I nodded and then scurried out the door.

I opened the trunck and put all f the things in when my phone rang from inside my pocked. I closed the trunk quickly and then took the cell phone out of my pocket. A number that I didn't recognize came up on the screen, but insread of pressing ignore, I anwsered it.

"Hello," I said in the happiest voice I could muster.

"Bella!" I heard a voice say on the other line. "Bella, oh, God, you have to come home!"

I gasped, nearly dropping the phone onto the pavement. "Rebecca?!" I said, my voice going into a high octave. "What are you calling me for? I haven't talked to you in so long..."

"It's Adrian!" she screamed into the phone, her voice cracking. "He's dead... Adrian's dead!"

Rebecca was my best friend from my old school in Pheonix, Arizona. She was short and blonde, with a nice bubbly personality that was, right now, being hidden by her frantic screaming. We had meet in the seventh grade when she moved to Arizona from California to live with her father after her mother passed away. Adrian was her boyfriend, who she meet about six months before I left for Forks. I hadn't thought that they would have made it to the one year mark, because that was very rare for Rebecca, but apperantly, it was possible.

"Okay, Rebecca, calm down," I said. I could hear her breathing in the background, along with sobs that I could tell she was trying to contain. "I want you to tell me what happened."

"Adrian... he... he..."

"He what, Rebecca? He what?"

"He overdosed on precription medication! I knew he was addicted... I knew for a long time, and I didn't do anything to stop him. And now he's dead, Bella. He's dead, and it's all my fault. If I hadn't of-"

I had to cut her off. "Nothing is your fault."

"But I usually never let him stay in his apartment by himself! I would always go with him. _Always_. But my mom needed me home to watch the twins and I told him I needed to go home. If I had of stayed, he wouldn't be dead!"

I let her cry after that. She needed to get it all out. Rebecca was the kind of person who, when her moments appeared, she needed to make them worth while. So I stayed silent on the other end and listened to her hiccuping sobs and wails until I finally asked, "But why call me? Out of all people, why call me?"

She hiccuped again. "Because I need you."

"But what can I do?" I asked, wondering what I could do to help her through this terrible time. I mean, I hadn't talked to her in over a year. She didn't know about Edward, or Mason, or Parker, and the thought of her reaction scared me to death.

"I need you to come home."

I closed my eyes and gulped, taking deep breaths through my nose, though I really didn't need to.

"Okay," I said finally. "I'll come home for a while."

--

**A/N- Before I get the hater reviews asking why I hate Tanya so much, I just wanted to say that I don't hate Tanya. I really love her character. That's why she is a character. Also, I know I probably don't have some of the facts right, but that's okay. **

**So, please, review or PM me and tell me what you think! Also, PM me with ANY ideas you have! All will be considered!**


	5. Chapter 5: Jelousy

**Chapter Five**

I didn't really how I was going to manage to go back to Pheonix as a vampire. When Alice had came to Florida, she has just clad herself in hats and long sleeves and jeans, and that seemed to work just fine. But how would I explain my beauty to those who I haven't seen in such a long time? My friends and my enemies woudl have questions, and I would need to know the anwsers before I went.

Edward and the children were going to come with me. Mason and Parker don't sparkle in the sunlight, unlike myself and Edward, so I wouldn't have to worry about them. I guess it would be an excuse for Edward to wear his baseball cap when he isn't playing baseball.

When I got home, I opened the door as I normally would, then turned and called out to Edward. He was at my feet just as I was hanging my coat up in the closet.

"Did you get the diapers?" he asked, looking down at the bags in my hand. I nodded. "Good. Mason needs to be changed. I can do it if you like." He reached down and took the bags from my hands, and I shook my head.

"I need to talk to you about something," I said, taking his hand and taking him into the kitchen. He put the bag on the island, and then walked with me out the back porch and sat on the wooden swing. I sat next to him and folded my hands on my lap.

"I need to go to Pheonix."

"Pheonix?" Edward asked, his eyebrow cocked. "Why would you need to go there?"

I sighed. "My old friend Rebecca, her boyfried, Adrian, died. He overdosed on percription medication, and I know that I haven't spoken to her in a long time, but I need to go." I turned to him. "And I want you and the boys to go, too. It'll only be for a few days."

"I'm not letting you go by yourself, so of course we'll go with you. But we'll have to be careful- extremely carefuly not to let the sun touch our skin. How do you suppose we manage that?"

"When Alice came to Florida when I was pregnant with Mason," I saw Edward's face cringe as I said this, because he hated to think about me being pregnant, and alone,"she just wore long sleeves and hats. It looked kinda of off, considering it's Florida and it's sunny most of the time, but the days were starting to get shorter, meaning it would be dark by seven in the night."

He nodded, understanding. "It'll probably be for around two days. And I could ask Carlisle if he has any of the drink mix..."

I cocked my head. "What?"

He hesitated for a moment before saying, "Carlisle experimented with different chemicals, trying to see how they reacted with vampires bodies. When he mixed two chemicals together- and I'm not really sure which chemicals they are- they dilute the sparkle in our skin. So much, in fact, that the human eye can't pick it up."

"Have you tried it?" I asked, intrigued.

"Myself, Emmett and Jasper tried it out about twenty years ago. The effects of the drink only lasts a few hours at the most, so we will need to bring extra if we want to use it."

"Is it dangerous?" I wondered.

He shook his head. "No, not that we've experianced. Carlisle has used it more than we have, when he needs to go to work on a sunny day, and he hasn't had a problem with it."

I had a question stirring in the back of my mind. "If this works so well, why didn't Alice use it when she was coming to visit me in Florida?"

Edward thought for a moment before saying, "Probably because she didn't want anyone to know where she was going. If she asked Carlisle for the drink, we would ahve known that she was going somewhere sunny, and not out hunting like she said she was going to do. She was pretty clever."

I nodded in agreement. "Very."

He reached down and took my hand. "I'll book a flight tonight, then hopefully we can leave by tomorrow morning. But right now, we've got two screaming babies that need a clean diaper." He looked down at me and smiled a smile that reached all the way up to his ears. I squeezed his hand and followed him upstairs.

--

"I'm so sorry to hear about the loss of your friend," Tanya said, coming up behind me as I washed some of the babies bottles. She leaned over the side of the counter as I dried up my hands. "It must be hard watching your friends perish while you stay immortal."

"Adrian was _not_ my friend," I said through gritted teeth, then turned to face her. "But yeah, it's going to be pretty damn rough watching those I love die. But in the end, I have to be happy with my decision to stay with the one I love, the father of my _children_. Everything I do is for _them_."

"It's a shame, really," Tanya said, seeming to ignore all that I had just said to her. "All these humans who don't know there is actually a way to achieve immortaility. Us vampiries, of course, wish that there was a way to reverse being immortal. I guess it like people who have naturally straight hair always want curly hair, and vice versa. No one ever gets what they want."

"Nobody deserves to die," I said flatly. "I know some of the meanest people, but I wouldn't wish death or immortaility on them. I'm not God. I can't _play_ God."

"But you sure can play Edward," she said, nudging me with her elbow and winking. "I've tried to decades to get in his pants, but he never did budge. And then you walk into his life with your beating heart and crimson cheeks, and suddenly he's head over heels in love with you. I mean, he had to be, to have sex with you as a fragile human. Twice! You must be something special."

"I'm not _special_," I told her dryly. "And I didn't chose this life. This life chose me."

"More like Edward chose you," she remarked. "He could have anyone he could ever imagine, ever want. I don't know why he would pick someone like you."

I looked at her, my anger overpowering any kind of empathy I once held. "I could say the same about you! You... with your stupid blonde hair and flawless skin, acting oh so innocent and descret. It's a shame that someone would think of turning the likes of you into a self centered, plastic bitch!"

She looked at me, and for a moment I thought she was going to turn and walk away, never to show her face around here again. But then a smile slowly crept up her face, and she put her hand over her heart in faux hurt. "Shocking, Bella. Truly shocking. How dare you expose your kids to such vulgar language? I'm disgusted. I'm sure Edward would be, too, if he knew the mother of his children had such awful words tucked into her vocabulary."

I gritted my teeth even more. _Words, not actions. Use your words, not your fists_, I thought to myself, repeating the rules my kindergardgen teacher used to say.

"Anyway, Edward and his brother's invited me along with them to go hunting this evening. Too bad you couldn't go with us." She reached over and touched my shoulder, looking me in the eyes with those evil, cat-like eyes that mocked everything I stood for. "I guess you gotta love your special power, eh?"

I turned my body so her hand fell a few centimeters, before she caught it again. "I don't know who the hell you think you are," I told her. "But you better watch your back. Edward loves me, and I know that he would never, ever leave me!"

She turned her back and then slowly, ever so slowly, turned her head to look at me. "Of course. Because he hesitated last time, right?"

And I don't know why, but that hit me straight in my heart.

I used to think about Edward leaving and feel angry at him for doing so. But now, knowing how sorry and stupid he feels for leaving, I feel sad whenever I think about him walking out the door without me, never to come back again.

I wanted to say that I wasn't jekous of Tanya for being asked to go hunting with Edward, but that would be a lie. The truth was that I was insanely jelous of her. I kept having to remind myself that Tanya was a good friend of the Cullen's, despite how evil and bitter she seemed, to me, at least. But still, _I_ should be the one hunting with Edward and his brothers. _Not_ her.

Walking into the living room a few minutes later, after mine and Tanya's argument, I was surprised to see her on the couch with Edward, her hand resting on his knee as they laughed at Mason, who was making towers with his blocks and knocking them down in a fit of giggles.

Edward seemed totally oblivious to Tanya's form of flirting, but I, on the other hand, was not. Looking at Tanya made my stomach churn and twist in ways that it never has before, and I just wanted to take Edward by the hand and haul him away from that witch.

"I don't know why," I heard Tanya say as I stayed behind the corner, out of sight. "But this color-" she ran her hand down the length of his chest, referring to the bold burgundy color of his plain t- shirt "-looks amazing with your hair color." Then, ever so slowly, her hand ran through his hair, tousling it. "You know, I've really missed you over the years."

"As I have you."

"Mommy," I heard Mason say, looking up from his blocks and beckoning for me. "I see you there, Mommy!"

I came from around the corner with my head down, hoping to give Edward some kind of clue that I was feeling down. But as I walked over to Mason and picked him up, I saw that Edward hadn't moved and was still just sitting there watching me. Tanya was leaning a little too close to ever be considered comfortable.

"Can I talk to you for a minute, pleasE?" I asked, looking at Edward from under my lashes. I saw Tanya roll her eyes at me before leaning back into the couch, allowing Edward to get up and follow me into the kitchen.

"What did you need?" he asked in a gentle, kind voice, totally oblivious to the fact that I was hurting. I still had Mason in my arms, his head resting on my shoulder as he sucked his thumb thoughtfully.

"Tanya told me you are taking her hunting," I said softly, gently swaying back and forth to keep Mason sleepy.

"Myself, Jasper and Emmett invited her," he stated with a nod.

"I... I just," I took a moment to look at him and and make sure our eyes were connection. "I just wanted it to be me."

"It will be you evenually," he told me solemnly. "But you need to have certain skills in order to hunt the right way. My brothers and Carlisle, along with myself, have decided that your not ready yet."

"You're talking about me behind my back?" I asked in a whispered shout, my eyes wide.

He shook his head. "More like...discussing. I wouldn't want to place you in a situation where you are vunerable and don't know what to do."

"That's because you won't teach me!" I threw my free hand up in the air, then let them slap back down to my sides. "I can't learn without a teacher."

"I _am_ going to teach you," he told me. "But it's going to take some time for you to learn how. And right now, I need to hunt. So do my brothers and Tanya, and we are going to hunt together."

I closed my eyes, just anting to drop the stupid subject, but not completely ready to give up. "When will you be home?"

"A few hours," he said with a shrug. "Give or take a few minutes. We are just going to hunt in the woods behind the house; let her taste the best elk I've had in decades.

_I want too take the elk before she does_, I thought to myself harshly. _I want to hunt these forests before she does. _

"Be carful," I saidm turning on my heel and walking upstairs, all the while hoping he understood the double meaning to what I had said.

--

Edward, Emmett, Jasper and Tanya all left to go hunting not long after mine and Edward's talk. I had stayed home by myself and done some housework, trying to keep my mind off Tanya and Edward and what they could possibly be doing in that big, green forest.

Edward had made plane reservations for six in the morning to go to Pheonix to see Rebecca. I was anxious to get this reunion over with so I could go on with my normal life.

We were going to talk to Carlisle when he gets home later tonight. He and Esme were attending a banquet for the hospital to help raise some money to buy a new, more advanced x- ray machine. Carlisle uses his good looks and charm to attract woman from as far as Seattle to attend, just to get a glance at his mysterious eyes and beautiful blonde hair. Of course Esme would just shrug off whenever anyone claim their jelously of her- she would good natured like that.

I put both Mason and Parker down for a nap about an hour ago, meaning Ihad about two hours left to myself. Alice and Rose had gone to Port Angelas shopping for summer dresses. It was lonely in this large, open house and I couldn't help but feel enclosed in my own thoughts of Edward and Tanya.

I pushed aside these thoughts and focused on cleaning the marble counter tops, making sur they were polished to perfection and looked as perstine as possible.

I heard Emmett burst through the door, his booming voice bouncing off the newly cleaned floors, walls, and furniture. He was followed by Jasper who sprung through the door behind him. Edward and Tanya were no where to be seen.

"Where's Edward?" I asked, walking into the living room, wiping my hands with a cloth the smelt strongly of lemon and Pine- Sol.

"Him and Tanya decided to go a little farther out into the woods, around Port Angelas." He turned to Jasper then. "Man, that girl can hunt!"

Jasper nodded enthusiasticly in agreement with his older brother. "Her techniques... The way she jumps so high in the air and pounces. Kills the thing right away without a single struggle! Carlisle would be impressed."

_Impressed_, I thought bitterly, scrunching my face with distaste. _I could impress Carlisle if I was given a chance_.

Emmett must have noticed that I wasn't as enthusiastic as he was before he wrapped one arm around my shoulders and squeezed a little. "C'mon, Bella," he said. He and Rose had returned from their "hunting" trip last night. I hadn't seen Rose yet- she was probably avioding my and the children. "Don't be so down."

"It's kind of hard not to be," I said flatly, "when Edward is off with that Tanya girl. I know he wouldn't do anything to toy with our relationship again. It's her I don't trust. She just... I don't know how not to be a little jelous of her."

Emmett chuckled. "Don't you worry about Tanya," he told me. "I've known her for a very, very long time. She's a good person once you get to know her."

"Oh," I said, my face dropping. I didn't want to get to know Tanya, but wouldn't dare say that in front of Emmett. "Okay."

I saw Emmett smile, then remembered what Edward and I had overheard a few nghts ago. The truth behind Emmett's warm, open smile made me shiver inside. Yes, he was happy; he had a loving wife and family, but he would always be missing children, something that he couldn never have. His smile would never reach his ears- it would never be complete.

Jasper had gone upstairs, and from the living room, I could hear the television playing some kind of sports game and the announcers boomed throughout the house.

Emmett was turning now and heading towards the kitchen. I reached out and grabbed his elbow gently, forcing him to turn towards me again.

"Wait," I told him quickly. "I want to talk to you about something." I know Edward had said that we should keep it to ourselves, but I had questions in the back of my mind, begging to be anwsered. I knew asking Rose would be useless; she was much to emotional on the subject to sit and anwser questions for me.

He turned around and smiled, and for a moment, I felt quilty. "Yeah?"

I closed my eyes and took a breath through my nose, then re-opened them to see Emmett looking at me with curious eyes.

"The other night." I began, then hesitated, "you and Rose were fighting. Edward and I were going to go make the babies a bottle, but we heard you and stopped. We both knew that we shouldn't have been peeping... but the things you were saying just caught us a little of guard. You were talking about the, um... you know..."

He nodded slowly. "The adoption list."

I nodded and gulped the excess venom that had formed in my mouth. "Yes, that."

He took a big, un-needed breath and then began, "It's a long story, and I'll tell you all the details without editing too much out." He looked at me to make sure that I was interested, and when I nodded, he said, "It began in the fifties. Rose and I had been together for a really long time, and we've always talking about children. Of course we knew that wasn't going to happen, but we were wishful. Turns out, wishful thinking isn't always such a good idea. Anyway, Rose brought up the idea of adoption to me one day, and I agreed because I knew how happy a baby would make her. But we don't look very old, and saying that were were in our late twenties was a little too much of a hoax. So we said that we were in our very early twenties, married, and ready for a family, but they still didn't buy it. Honestly, I understand why. Who would want to give a baby to two kids, no matter how much they loved each other? It was just too... unbelievable. People who give their children up for adoption want them to go to a family where the couple will be together forever. But no one believes that Rose and I, being so young, would make it. But we didn't give up. We couldn't give up! We took our names off lists and onto others every three years, but still, nothing. It's so fustrating! We're just about ready to give up..."

"And this is causing strain with you and Rose?"

"Strain, yes. But I'm never going to stop loving her. But I think we both need to understand that we won't ever have our own family. We will have each other, and that's it."

I felt a little akward and didn't know what to say. I finally settled on, "I'm so sorry." And I knew it was cliche and cheesy, but I had no idea what else to say.

"Don't be sorry," he said with his not-so-complete-smile. "It'll all be fine; it'll work itself out or something. I'm not sure. But Bella," he said, catching my attention, "please don't bring this up to anyone else. I don't like having to keep secrets from my family, but we don't want to seem... too desperate."

"I understand."

He patted my shoulder. "Thanks, Bells."

--

**A/N- Here is chapter five! I really hope everyone likes it! I wrote most of this chapter during school when I was suppose do me doing my math work! Now, feel lucky! LOL! Please PM me if you want to talk or ask me any questions. Review!**


	6. Chapter 6: Kiss and Tell

**Chapter Six**

I waiting for another two hours for Edward to return from hunting with Tanya, and when he didn't return, I went upstairs, grabbed two suitcases from the closet in mine and Edward's room, and took one of them into the babies room. I sat it on the floor, then turned to Mason's crib. He was standing up, his arms extended up high for my to pick him up. I quickly took him up into my arms, then placed him back down on the carpeted floor. I passed him down one of his toy trucks, then went to the corner of the room and grabbed both he and Parker's carseats before setting them down on the floor beside Mason.

Parker began to whimper from inside his crib, so I picked him up, kissed his head gently with my lips, then placed him in his carried. Then I did the same with Mason, who eagerly asked where we were going, to which I replied that we were going to go on a little vacation. He didn't say anything after that, but instead just nodded his head and sat back in h is seat so I could strap him in.

When I was done that, I opened the suitcase on the floor and began to rumage through Mason and Parker's drawers, throwing anything I thought that they would need on our little vacation for those few days. Then, in the blink of an eye, I brought that suitcase outside to the car and went back into the kids room.

"Come on, bud," I said as I hoisted up Mason's carseat, then Parker's right after. I took them both into mine and Edward's room, then placed them on the bed, the empty, open suitcase in front of them. I turned and faced the closet, opened it, and took out several pairs of jeans and a pair of black dress pants for the funeral, a few nice, clean shirts and a blouse. Then I grabbed the pair of heels Alice had bought for me a while back and shoved them into the suitcase. I zipped it up, brought it down to the truck with the other one, then went back upstairs to get the boys.

No one questioned me when I left. They probably just thought that I was going to Charlie's- something I did regulary with the boys. I closed the door behind me, took the boys to the car and strapped them in, then got in the front seat and started the engine. I hesitated for a moment before driving down the long and narrow driveway, getting on the highway, and driving towards the airport.

--

The airport wasn't that crowded, considering it was during the school year. The only people I saw were old couples and adults with small, non- school aged children and people who worked at the airport. It was wierd being there and going through security with no one else around, but it gave me a sense of piece of mind and made me relax a little.

When I was done security, I took Mason and Parker to the intermission to wait. It was like the food court in the mall, with several different places to eat and then a large, over- sized room filled with sets of tables and chairs. I sat on one chair and placed Mason and Parker's carseats on the two chairs opposite me so they were facing me. The plane didn't leave for another thirty minutes, the only thing to do in this little airport was sit on one of these chairs and wait. So that was what I was going to do, but then I got this urge to call Charlie.

I took my cell phone out of my pocket and dialed the familiar buttons. Charlie's voice picked up moments later with a soft, "Hello?"

"Dad," I said quickly. "It's me."

"Oh, hey Bells," he said, his voice becoming more laid back, casual. "What's up?"

"I'm at the airport with the boys," I explained. "Rebecca, you know my friend from Pheonix, well her boyfriend died the other day, and she kind of wants me there for support."

"Is Edward going with you?" he asked, bursting into father mode.

I sighed and shook my head, though I knew he couldn't possibly see me. "No. A... friend of his dropped by the house and they are gone... to reconnect. I'm going alone."

"Well... be carefull, especially with the boys. And want you to call every night, okay? I'm getting much too old to have to be worrying about you." He chuckled, and I laughed along with him.

"You're not old," I protested, still laughing. "But of course I'll call you. I'm not going to be gone for long, only a few days, so I don't think you'll miss me that much." I laughed again, but the humor in my laugh was dull and dry. "I'll come by with the boys for a visit as soon as we get back. I love you."

"I love you too, Bella," he said. "Have a good flight, alright?"

"Okay. Thanks. Bye." I hung up, then put my phone back into my pocket, then turned to Parker and Mason. Parker was asleep and Mason was awake, just looking around at his new surroundings and gurgling to himself. I just sat with my elbow on the table, my chin in my palm, and one leg crossed over the other, waiting for the voice over the intercom to announce that it was time for the departure of my flight. But just as I thought the, the voice came over the speaker and said, "Sorry for any inconvience, but flight 105 to Flagstaff, Arizona had been delayed approximatly half an hour due to untimely weather conditions. Again, sorry for any inconvience this way have caused. This had been the Port Angelas airport- thank you for chosing us for your flying needs!"

I put my head on my forehead and groaned in annoyance. Mason seemed to find this funny, as he giggled and laughed joyfully.

"This is funny, huh?" I asked, reaching over and tickling his stomach playfully, causing him to laugh harder then he was before and throw his hands in the air. "Well, I'm glad your amused, but it seems that we are going to be her for another while." I sighed then and closed my eyes, my head still in my hands. I was tired, that was was something I couldn't deny. I was hoping to catch some shut eye along with the boys on the flight, but I guess that wasn't going to happen.

In the little cafeteria where we were resting, there were a few other groups of people waiting and eating, also. A group of five woman sat at a table in the center of the room dressed in tight pencil skirts and matching jackets and eating fast food. I realized they must be the flight attendants who were, like me, waiting to board. To the left of them was a woman, maybe in her later twenties or early thirties, sitting with a little girl who looked to be around ten or eleven. The woman taked on her phone too loudly as the girl played a hand held game and chewed bubblegum, making big bubbles then popping them with her finger. A few tables away from me was an older couple, maybe in their fifties, just sitting there was one suitcase each and rubbing their temples. It made me kind of sad to know that I won't ever get to experiance being old like that, but at the same time, I'm glad that staying at the age you were when you got changed into a vampire was part of being a vampire.

I waited for another couple minutes, then a familiar, evil sounding laugh interupted my train of thoughts. My head snapped up and and I turned my body so I was facing the entrance to the cafeteria. Tanya's red eyes glowed, and Edward's golden eyes sparkled. Edward was in front of Tanya, his eyes scanning until they landed upon mine. Then he seemed to jump, like he was surprised, before jogging over to me and stopping.

"What are you doing here?" I asked dimly, not trying to sound harsh but failing.

"I came home and you and the boys weren't there. Then I remembered about Pheonix..." he said, his voice trailing off.

I looked up at Tanya, who was standing slightly behind Edward. When I looked, she narrowed her eyes at me, and I looked quickly back at Edward. "What is she doing here?"

Edward glanced back at Tanya, then back at me. "She drove me her because I knew that you would have had your truck. No need to take two cars." He shrugged, trying to be indifferent.

"She can go now." I made my voice bitter and narrowed my eyes at her.

"I'm just leaving now," she said, and her voice was sweet and kind sounding, not like the Tanya I knew and dispised. Then she turned to Edward and placed this, what I knew was a faux smile on her face, looking all sweet and innocent and fake. "Can I please speak with you for a moment?"

Edward looked at me, and I just looked back, not making any movements, any gestures. I just stared at him, and then he turned around and nodded. "Yeah, sure."

I watched as they both walked the length of the food court then stood at the end. Tanya was standing still in front of Edward, her head held up, her eyes locked on his. She was talking, her lips staying close together as she spoke. I couldn't see Edward's face -his back was to me- but I could tell that he was nodding his head, slowly, but still nodding. Then, ever so slightly, Tanya leaned up and kissed him, her lips moving sensually on his. And what surprised me the most was the Edward didn't pull back, didn't jump away, but instead just stayed there and kissing back, his head bobbing with hers. I couldn't look, so I turned my head sharply towards Mason and Parker, closed my eyes and bit down on my lip, hard.

I an overwhelming sense of anguish pour through my body as I looked down at the two little boys my and Edward's love had made only a short while ago. How could he do this? I couldn't look back over, I just couldn't will myself to do it, though before I got the chance, I felt a heavy hand clamp down gently on my shoulder.

"Bella," Edward's voice sent shivers down my spine and I shrugged his hand off of my shoulder. He sighed, "I don't know what just happened."

I felt myself laugh out of spite of the moment. "Well, you went to talk to Tanya, and you ended up with your lips on hers." I said spitefully, licking my slightly chapped lips. I stood up, my newly vampiric skills allowing me to poke Edward and make him stumble back a little. "I knew it. I _knew_ it!"

"Bella, please, you don't understand-"

"I've got to go." I stood up, took Mason and Parker's carseats into my grasp, then started to walk to the terminal. Tears of venom started to flow down my cheeks, but I tried to ingore them and kept walking, my head up.

"Bella! Wait!" He stood in front of me, his eyes pleading. "Listen to me, okay?"

"Listen to what?!" I asked. "I saw what I saw."

"You don't understand, Bella. She kissed _me_."

"And you didn't pull away."

"But... I... I couldn't."

I closed my eyes. "That's all I needed to know." I pushed past him, balancing both Mason and Parker's seats in my hand. All the luggage had gone through security and were waiting to be on the plane, which should be ready at any moment. I walked to the terminal, glancing back only once to see Edward following behind me. I stopped and waited for him to catch up.

"You're going to listen to me?" he asked now, hopeful.

I shook my head. "No," I told him, "but if you don't _fuck off_ right now, I swear, you won't have to worry about me listening to you ever again."

This caught him off guard. He stammered back, and I felt bad, but only had to remember that she kissed him, and kissed her back.

I turned and walked through the terminal. The flight attendant smiled at me and directed me in the way of the plane. I just faked a smile at her and looked back at Edward, who was watching us go, before rolling me eyes and heading onto the plane.

--

Pheonix was sunny and hot, and made me remember why I loved the sun much. As I got off the plane with Mason and Parker in my arms, the sun instantly made me squint. I had been talking to Rebecca, and she had arranged for a car to be dropped off in the airport parking lot. I walked slowly to the car -a red Mazda- and stopped, the babies in my arms.

I put the babies into the car and rolled down the windows a little bit so the car, that was blazing hot, wouldn't be as hot for the babies. I knew it would the cool breeze would feel nice once the car started moving, and I was more than eager to get in and drive to Rebecca's.

I just had my hand on the door, but an icy, white hand with long fingers covered mine. When I looked up, Edward was standing. He wasn't wearing a hat like I was, and he wasn't sparkling.

"Edward," I breathed. "How did you get here?"

"Did you honestly think that I was going to let you, the love of my life, leave with my two children to jet off to Pheonix?" He shook his head. "I love you too much to let that happen. I've been away from you for two long."

"And both have been by your choice," I said slowly, rolling my eyes at his stupidity. He lowered his eyes so his eyes were next to mine.

"It's her power," he told me, meeting my gaze and holding it there, for what seemed like an eternity. This caught my attention, so I raised my eyebrows at him. "It's her power. I hadn't had enough time to tell you when I found out, but Tanya's power is that of thought and action control. This mean," he continued, "that she can control the thoughts and actions of people, and even vampires. When she looks at them, its like they are under some kind of spell... and they can't break it. That's why I kissed her, why I was gone for so long. I never want to hurt you, Bella. Never again."

"So it was Tanya," I said, "not you."

He nodded. "Right."

"Does Tanya know that you know?" I asked, still full of questions. "I mean, she can't be happy if you do know."

"She has no idea that myself or the rest of my family know. She doesn't realize the strength of my power." He smirked, like he was proud of himself. "But Bella, just know that I would never do that to you."

"I know," I said finally. "I know, Edward. But still, it was hard to watch you guys do that. In front of me, whether you meant it or not."

He leaned down and kissed me, our lips lingering there for just a moment before he pulled back. "I have something for you."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a tiny bottle of a red liquid. "This," he said to me, "is the elixar that will make you not shine in the sun." He gave me the bottle, and I inspected it quickly. "It's effects are immediate, so you can ditch the hat, but like I said, they do wear out. I have more elixar in my bag."

I nodded and took the cap off of the bottle. I held it up to Edward, making sure it was okay to drink. I tipped my head back and drank, the red liquid making my mouth feel like I had drank fizz. It burned a little, then was replaced with a bitter taste. I cringed in distaste, and Edward chuckled.

"It's not pleasant," he told me, still chuckling. "But it works. See, you aren't sparkling." I leaned down the side mirror of the rented car and saw that, in fact, I was not sparking in the sun. I took off my hat and gaped at my reflection. "But it works."

I ran my hand over my cheek. "It really does," I said. "Carlisle's a genius."

"Indeed." Edward walked around to the other side of the car and is about to get in when I call hi name. "Yeah?"

"I'm sorry," I told him, "for not listening to you. I should have listened to you. I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry." He ducked into the car, and I followed. Behind us, Mason and Parker were both fast asleep, enjoying the sun while it lasted. I put on the air conditioner and turned the radio on, just a little, to a contry station that I remembered listening to when I lived here. "I would have dont the same thing."

I just nodded and drove out of the airport parking lot. Rebecca lived only minutes away, in a large, surburban house in one of those fancy, gated communities. Rebecca hadn't always lived that way though. Before her mother remarried, they were both living in a little, run down apartment in the worst part of the neighborhood. Her little brother, Rayne, was only an infant when her mother met Peter, the attorny she had hired to take care of her divorce case. He was her same age, and had a daughter around the same age as Rebecca. Since the marriage, Rebecca and Rayne have been living the high life, getting whatever they want, whenever they want. They went from an apartment to a high class three story house with the things a person could ever want, including a maid that came in twice a week and a chef, who prepared homecooked meals, evernight.

On the plane, I had called Rebecca to let her know that I was arriving. She was thrilled, and I could hear through her tears that she was grateful that I was coming.

When I got past the gates of the community, I had no trouble remembering which house was Rebecca's. It was tall and wide and white, with a dark roof and several expensive cars in the driveway.

I pulled into her driveway and stopped. I didn't get out, but instead just looked ahead and said, "I've got a lot of explaining to do," then glanced back at Mason and Parker, who were now awake and looking around.

"It's fine." Edward opened the door and got out, and I followed him. It still amazed me that the sun wasn't doing anything to us.

I went around and got Parker, still in his seat, while Edward got Mason out of his seat and into his arms. I looked at Edward, who nodded, and they we both started up the driveway to the house. When I stopped at the door, I lifted up my hand and knocked. Inside, I could hear the shuffling of feet, and before long, the door was open, and Rebecca, with her faux blonde hair and blue eyes, was standing in front of me.

"No way," he said, looking at me, then Edward, then the babies. "No way."

I stepped in a hugged her with my free hand. She hugged back, but I could tell by the way she was breathing that she was surprised. I couldn't blame her, though.

When she stepped back, she was gawking at me. "You have children?!" she nearly yelled, opening the door wider and letting us in. She guided us to her living room, where a big L shaped couch was located, along with a large plasma television, her mother's bookshelf full of books, and an assortment of very expensive paintings her mother bought while on a trip to Europe.

We all sat down, and I awnsered with a, "Yes, I do." I gestured to little Parker. "This is Parker, and this," -I gestured toward Mason in Edward's arm- "is Mason."

"Wow," she shook her head. "I can't believe it! You have kids!" She cracked a smile and looked at Edward. "And this is...?"

"My boyfriend," I told her. "Edward."

"A pleasure to meet you," Edward said in a smooth voice, reaching over to shake her hand. She shook, and then looked at me, giving me a look that told me she approved, very much, of Edward.

"They're beautiful," she stated.

"I know," I said, smiling widely. "They're everything to me."

It was silent then for a few minutes. Parker fell asleep, and Mason was laughing at Edward, who was making funny faces at him. After another moment of an akward yet comfortable silence, Rebecca started to cry.

"Oh, dear," I said in a sympathetic voice. "Rebecca..."

She wiped her eyes and shook her head. "I'm sorry," she said. "I just lose it sometimes; I can't help it."

I reached over and pat her knee. "I know it's hard," I coaxed. "But it'll get better, Rebecca. I promise you, it will get better."

He sniffled and nodded her head. "I know," she said. "Bella, you're such a good friend."

--

**A/N- I am SO sorry for the wait! It's been over a month since I've updated, and for that, I am sorry. I haven't had any inspiration, but yesterday me and some friends went to see New Moon, and now I have so much inspiration I think might head might explode! If you've seen the movie and would like to discuss it with me- PM me! I'd love to talk to you! Please, review!**


	7. Chapter 7: Oh No

**Chapter Seven**

The next day, the local high school I once attended while I was living in Pheonix was holding a memorial service in the auditorium for Adrian. Rebecca had convinced myself and Edward to take the babies, and I could honestly say that I was a little more than nervous. The majority of the people that would be there would be people I haven't seen since I moved to Forks, got a gorgeous boyfriend, and became a mother of two, beautiful boys.

Now, Edward and I were driving in that rented car, Mason and Parked in the backseat. I was looking out the window, my hands on my lap, biting my lip. I was nervous to see old friends, old enemies, and teachers.

"What's wrong?" Edward asked, glancing at me for just a moment before going back to the road.

"Nothing," I muttered.

He shook his head and turned the radio off. "It's times like these when I wish I could read your mind, because-" he reached over and grabbed my hand- "know that something is on your mind. Something's bothering you."

"It's just," I began, "I'm just nervous, that's all."

He chuckled. "Because of all the people you haven't seen in so long?"

I nodded. "Exactly."

He squeezed my hand. "Don't let anything bother you. It's all going to be fine, I can promise you that."

I smile up at him and say, "Thanks, Edward. Really."

It takes another couple minutes before we are at the school. Pheonix High School is a big, bold building, three stories tall and very, very wide. Right away, as we parked in the lot and started to get out, I notced the cheerleaders. They were dressed in the school colors, red and white, with the jocks gathered around them. I was about to get Mason out of his seat when I heard a voice from behind me.

"Oh, my God! Bella Swan?!"

I turned, suddenly, and there were two cheerleaders there, who just so happened to be two of the most popular girls in school were standing in front of me, their uniforms on. Their hair was still dyed bleach blonde, their makeup done to perfection, just as remembered it.

"Sophia. Ava." I nod towards them, keeping just a slim, slow smile on my face. They smile back, then their gaze directs above my head, and I know, just know, that they are looking at Edward.

"Is that your boyfriend?" Sophia asked. I rolled my eyes, knowing she just asked because she thinks, as most people do, that he so hot and terribly good- looking. Much too hot for me. Or what used to be me, at least. "I mean, is he?"

Ava fluffed her hair as I said, "Yeah. That's Edward; my boyfriend."

"Well, well, well," Sophia says, tucking a peice of her blond hair behind her ears in a way that, I guess, was suppose to make her look sexy. To me, she looked like a fool. "You've really changed some, Bella. You used to be shy, timid, keeping to yourself... and then you move to Spoons and-"

"Forks," I told her. "It's called Forks."

"Whatever." She ran her manicured, pink- tipped nail over her eyebrow. "But now, all of a sudden, you're beautiful and have a super hot boyfriend. What's up with all that?"

I shrugged. "I guess a lot has changed."

"I guess it has," I agreed. I glanced back at Edward, who is still bouncing little Parker in his arms, grinning like this is amusing. I rolled my eyes and shot him a smile, then reached into the car and picked up Mason.

He rested is head on my shoulders and I turned back to Sophia and Ava. "This," I told her, "is Mason. And that," -I point with my finger to Parker- "is Parker. They're my sons."

Sophia folded her arms over her chest and Ava gaped. "Shit," Sophia said finally, after a moment of silence. "You were... busy."

I nodded, then turned to Ava. "Well, it was nice to see you both," I said. "But we have to, um, go. The memorial is going to start soon, and we have to find Rebecca.

"Right." Sophia nodded, still dazed and shocked from my news. "Bye."

I watched as Sophia and Ava left, their backs turned to me, and walked back to theur group of friends around the hood of an expensive looking car. I could hear the music radiating from the car, and as Edward and I turned away, the music followed us in my head.

--

The gym was packed when myself, Edward and the children got there. On the stage was a large picture of Adrian, his smile large and vibrant. He was wearing a baseball cap, his blonde hair still clearly visable. Behind him, it seemed, was some sort of park, and you could fainly make out other people in the background. Surrounding the picture were candles, all of them glowing brightly with a nice, dim, orange glow. Roses and tulips and lily's were next to the candles, dozens upon dozens of them overflowing. To say the least, it was a beautiful memorial.

"I took that picture, you know."

I turn and come face to face with Rebecca. Her eyes are brimmed red and she is wearing no makeup, except some mascara, which was sliding down her cheeks along with her tears. Her hair was up in a messy bun on top of her head, something she would never have allowed, and she was wearing sweat pants and a tank top.

"It was at the park, last month," she told me. "We fed ducks and had a picnik, just the two of us. And I've never been so happy before in my entire life."

I was about to say something, but she put her hand up and shook her head.

"Don't say it's going to be okay, that it's going to be fine. Because it isn't going to me okay or alright. _I'm_ not going to be alright. I'm sick of people trying to tell me otherwise, because, Bella, I _know_."

I reach over and touch her arm. I'm was just about to drop my arm when I pulled her close and enveloped her into a hug, Mason between us. "I'm here for as long as you need me," I told her seriously as she wrapped her arms around me.

"You're such a good friend, Bella," she said, then pulled back, more moist tears in her eyes. "Thank you." Then she turned to Edward and said, "Thank you so much, Edward. I really am grateful for everything."

Edward smiled brightly and gave her a hug, aswell. When they pull away, Rebecca wiped some tears from her face and forced a nice, crooked smile. "Well," she said finally, glancing around nervously, "I guess I should head back." She sighed, and patted my arm once more. "I'll see you around, I'm sure."

I nodded. "Of course," I told her. She left then, her back to me as she pushed through the crowd of people. A lot of them were crying, holding tissues or holding their friends. I felt bad, considering even some teachers were crying, their eyes wet with tears as they tried to keep their backs straight, their faces serious. Adrian must have been very loved and known to have caused all this grief with his death.

Thinking of this -death- I feel a pang of guilt somewhere deep inside of me. For myself, Edward and our family, it will always be the same. I will look like this one hundred years down the road, two hundred, three hundred years. Same with Edward and the rest of the Cullen's. Same for our children once they reach the age of seventeen. For us, life is just starting, but for Adrian and so many other's their life is gone, and that part hurts me the most.

"Oh, Isabella Swan!"

I jumped at the sound of my name. Standing right there in front of me was Mrs. Moore. She used to be my english teacher back when I attened this school, and out of all of my teachers, she was my favorite. She introduced me to the world of literature, of the Bronte sisters and Shakespear, of everything literature I known and loved as a teen.

"Mrs. Moore," I said, nodding towards her with a smile. "How nice it is to see you."

"Oh, and you aswell, Bella!" she exclaimed, leaning down the hug me. I patted her back with my free arm, and when she pulled up, she saw Mason. "Oh, and who is this?"

"This is Mason," I said. Mason looked up at her tiredly before he turned his head back on my shoulder and closed his eyes. Then I pointed to Parker. "That is Parker, and," -I pointed at Edward- "is Edward. My boyfriend."

She looked a little shocked, which is normal. "They are your children?" she asked nicely.

I nodded.

"Well, such a lot can change in such a short period of time!" she said in her normal, always- excited- no- matter- what voice. "They're beautiful."

I grinned, because I knew she was right. "They are."

"You seem to have your life all planned out," she said to me. "It's so nice to see you, Bella. If only the circumstances were different."

"I didn't know Adrian," I said. "But Rebecca seemed to be in love with him. Everyone seems to be missing him quite a lot."

She forced a smile, the edges of her mouth raising up slightly. "He was a great student," she said. "Straight B's, quarter back on the football team. And to hear that he overdosed on drugs just... well, it amazed me really. You never know what kids, no matter how good, can get into."

I thought about this. What if when Mason or Parker get older, they decided to make bad choices like the one Adrian made that sets back their life goals. I mean, until they turn seventeen, they have the possibilty to die. To be killed. And I want to think that I will raise them to be grateful for their lives, I still wonder.

Edward must have caught this because he said, "His parents must be going through so much right now. I can't imagine anything ever happening to one of my sons."

"Oh," she said, sounding like she didn't really know what to say. "I'm sure everything is going to be just fine. But right now, I have to get back. I'm due to say a speech at eleven, and I need to go to the staff lounge to practise. I'll probably see you around, though."

I nodded. "Yeah."

And then, just like that, she was gone, her body twisting through the crowd of sobbing teenagers, parents and staff. I watched until she ws gone, and then turned to Edward. "Crazy stuff, huh?"

He nodded. "Oh yeah."

We watched Mrs. Moore's speech and a long, tearly speech from Adrian's best friend, Kyle, and sister, Annabel. Then we headed to the back of the gym where it wasn't so cluttered to find Rebecca sipping on a bottle of water, the condensation running down her fingers. She looked even worse than she did earlier, which was saying something, considered she looked a mess.

"Annabel's speech was," she hiccuped, "so beautiful. That thing about when they were kids, in the sandbox and he helped her when he scraped her knee, made me bawl even more."

"It was sad," I told her. "Touching, really."

She shook her head, the water dangling in her palm. "I thought he was the one. He was the one that I wanted to marry, to grow old with. God, Bella, I wanted to have his _babies_!"

I didn't know what to say to this, or if I should say anything at all, but after a pause, I said, "I understand," and I knew it wasn't really helping.

It took a moment. A pause, and then she turned to me, her brow furrowed, as she glanced back between myself and Edward. Then she lifted a finger and pointed at me. "You," she told me, "are sparkling."

--

**A/N- I, Shaunna100, am the most sorry person on the planet. I haven't updated in, oh, I don't know, _forever_. And I'm sorry. I could be the kind of person who says I was so busy, with the holidays and everything, but truth was, I wasn't. I was just too lazy to write, didn't have any inspiration, and had no idea where I was going with this chapter. But now I do, so it's all good.**

**So, happy holidays to all of my readers! I had a wonderful Christmas, full of family and friends and presents and turkey! I got my very own desk and chair for my room, which makes me feel even more like a writer than I already do. Thanks, Grandma!**

**From all of you wonderful readers and reviewers, to make my day, all you have to do is review this chapter! So, please review!**


	8. Chapter 8: The Question

**Chapter Eight**

I wasn't aware of the one open window in the auditorium that was streaming in a steady ray of light from the sun. At least, not until Rebecca pointed out the fact that myself -and Edward, I noticed- were sparkling. We weren't sparkling as much as we would have if we didn't have the elixar in us, but it was enough for her, and other people, to notice.

"Oh," I said, and laughed lightly, trying not to let her realize that I'm a little paniced. "Edward and I... we have to go for a minute..."

I grabbed Edward so hard by the arm and started towards the door, looking at nothing but the door. The baby was in my arms, asleep as usual, and as I made my way through the huge crowd of people, I felt so incredibly paniced that if I were human, I would be sweating. When I glanced back, I saw that Edward had the same paniced face on as I did, which resulted in us moving even quicker through the crowd.

The car seemed so far away from the school. We kept out of the way of people, making sure not to be seen, and as soon as we reached the car, Edward popped the trunk. The mixture were in water bottles, and Edward opened one up and gulped half of it, then passed the rest to me so I could drink it. I drank it and then looked at Edward. The sparkling was starting to fade, slow at first but then quicker with ever gulp we drank.

When I was done, I looked at Edward. "Holy crap," I said, running my fingers through my hair. "That was a close one."

Edward nodded, his eyes wide. "It really was," he said slowly.

I glanced around the parking lot. There were a few students laying on the hood of the car, their eyes closed. A girl was wrappped in her boyfriends arms, crying onto his shoulder, as he rubbed her back soothingly, comforting her. I looked at Edward and said, "This was such a sad day. Poor Rebecca – she seemed to be in love with him."

"Yeah," Edward agreed. "She really did. I don't know what I would do if I lost you."

"I don't know what I would do if I lost you, either," I said, looking up into his eyes. I then took three strides towards him, placed my hands on his chest, and leaned up to kiss his lips. They were so nice, moulding with mine. I wanted to stay like that. Forever.

--

When we got home two days later, Esme and Carlisle were hunting, Alice and Jasper were gone out somewhere with Tanya, who I really wasn't looking forward to seeing, and Rose and Emmett were back at the house. On the plane ride home, Edward and I had decided to talk to Rose and Emmett about the adoption process and what happened, even though Emmett had given us a good description of what they've been through over the last long while.

So, after we put Parker and Mason into their cribs for the night, we headed downstairs were Rose and Emmett were sitting on the couch, wrapped in each others arms. The television was on to some old soap opera, but neither of them were paying any attention.

They didn't even notice Edward and I as we sat across from them on the lovesteat until Edward cleared his throat. Then Rose glanced at us, a confused expression on her face, and said, "What?"

I looked at Edward, who nodded, then turned back to Rose and Emmett. "We... we came to talk about the adoption," I clarified.

"How do you - "

Emmett cut her off. "They heard us talking – or, bickering, rather – before they left. They confronted me... and I gave them some of the details." He looked at her, his voice unwavering. "I'm sorry, Rose... I know we said we didn't want anyone to find out unless something happened."

She sat up, leaning forward, her elbows on her knees. "So I'm guessing you have a lot of questions," she asked Edward and I.

Edward shrugged. "Just a couple," he told her with a smile.

She leaned back on the couch and folded her arms over her chest, looking at us, then Emmett, then us again. "Okay," she said. "Hit us."

"Well." I don't know why I was feeling nervous. Probably because I knew Rose was a little jelous of me for having Mason and Parker, and I didn't want to seem like I didn't care about her feelings, the way she thought about me, or what she was going through. Because I did. A lot. "I don't know, really... Everything was pretty much covered by Emmett. But, I want to hear it from you, too, Rose. What made you want to go on the adoption list?"

It didn't take her very long. After a short pause, an answer was formulated, "I love children," she stated simply, her voice surprisingly soft. "And I want children. Of course, Emmett and I can't reproduce, and, well, adoption was the only option. But, as I'm sure Emmett has told you, we just look too young to have or want a baby. So," - she passed a glance to Emmett - "we've taken our name off of the list."

I glanced at her. "Is that what you want?"

She shook her head. "Of course not," she said. "But do we have a choice? No, we don't. So it's better for Emmett and I not to get our hopes up, wondering. Because we all know the answer."

I gulped, then nodded. "I understand," I told her.

"We're sorry," Edward interjected. "Really. For both of you."

Emmett nodded. "Yeah," he said slowly. "Us, too."

Before anyone else got to say anything, the front door burst open, and when I glanced, I saw Alice and Jaser walk in, followed shortly after by Tanya, who was grinning. She was wearing dark skinny jeans and a casual T- shirt, her strawberry blonde hair still as perfect- looking as ever. When she saw me sitting there with Edward, she glared for a second, then put a smile back on and followed Alice and Jasper into the living room, with us.

"Hey!" Alice said. "You guys are back!"

Edward chuckled. "Looks that way," he said, another chuckle forming on his lips.

"I've missed you," Tanya said, her voice just barely audiable, as Alice and Jasper spoke to Emmett and Rose, their voices mingling.

I gulped back more cuss words. Why let her have the satisfaction of pissing me off, even if she was doing an excellent job? I mean, she hadn't even been in the house for five minutes, and I could already feel my venom pressure rising. Who did she think she way, anways? First, she acted as though she and Edward were soul mates, and secondly, she kissed him at the airport, using her compulsion to lure him into her trap. God, I hated her so much.

When Edward didn't say anything, she seemed to notice. She glared, trying to meet his eyes. I knew what she was doing - trying to use her compulsion to get Edward to say something to her, to do something to or with her. I didn't know what that was, but I knew I didn't like. At all.

"Did you have a good trip?" Alice asked. "I mean, considering."

We nodded. "The flight was good. It was nice to catch up with Rebecca and some old girls, and some teachers. Everyone seemed shocked to see I has babies." I laughed. "It was a sad time though, considering Adrian had died and everything. His sister Annabel gave the most heartfelt speech I had ever heard in my life. It was touching."

"It really was," Edward agreed.

After a few more questions about Pheonix and Rebecca, Alice, Jasper, Rosalie, and Emmett headed in their own direction, finding something to do for the remainder of the night. Tanya, however, stayed. A fact that really pissed me off, even mor then I already was. Did I mention I hated her?

"I'm leaving in a couple days," she said. When Edward and I exchanged a small smile, she said, "But I'll be back soon enough. Just you wait and see."

I rolled my eyes. "Right."

"Are you kidding?! Of course I will be back! Carlisle and Esme love me like their daughter."

At this, Edward couldn't help but chuckle a little. "I'm sure if they found out you were trying to use compulsion to split a family up, they wouldn't be thinking that way."

"And - " She didn't finish. Instead, her face fell, her brows furrowing, as she took in what Edward said. "How do you know about that...?"

"Mind reader." He tapped his head and laughed again. Then he stood up, going to stand in front of her, just a mere four feet away. "How dare you think you can trick me? I'm not stupid, Tanya, and I know what you're doing. You think Esme and Carlisle like you... but only because you are compulsing them, making them think they like you were they really don't. God, you need to get over yourself."

She tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, glancing from side to side. "I have no idea what you're talking about," she said. "I don't use compulsion on them."

"But you do," Edward agrued. "And it's so annoying, Tanya. Just leave."

She shook her head. "No."

"No?" Edward stepped forward. "And why not?"

"Because I don't want to go. Jesus, Edward, don't you remember what we used to have? We used to be in love with each other!"

"No." He shook his head. "You used to be in love me with. Yes, we were dating, but what does that mean? A lot of people date."

"That wasn't the same," she said, shaking her head again. "It was different. It was real. You felt it too. You had to."

"Well, I didn't," he explained. "I'm in love with Bella, the girl I want to be with forever. I love her, and our children, and my brothers and sister, and Esme and Carlisle. But I don't love you. I never have, and I never will. You have to understand."

"You," she said, pointing a finger at him, "are so wrong. So wrong!"

And then she turned, going to foyer, turning one last time to shake her head at us and scoff. Then she opened the door and took off. When I looked out the window, I could see her moving, so quickly, down the long, narrow driveway. But I knew she'd be back evenually.

Edward turned to me then, smiling. He was still wearing nice clothes – his dark jeans and navy sweater – and I was still in my nice clothes, too. I was wearing a pair of black jeans and a coral, flowy top. Ballet flats clad my feet. Edward reached down and grabbed my hand, sending shivers down my spine and a smile to appear on my face. "Come with me," he said. "I have something to show you."

I nodded. "Okay."

He led me out into the backyard. Trees were everywhere, gathering in clusters, enveloping all the space. There was a cobble pathway that headed into the woods, twisting and turning on for miles. I had seen it before, but had never been, so he guided me through, stopping after a moment to pick up a red tupil and place it in my hair.

"It symbols undying love," he told me, as we kept walking.

We had been walking for about fifteen minutes, just keeping a slow pace. Someone had hung battery lanterns on the trees, giving the place a warm glow. I was too busy looking at the wonderful wildflowers and trees that I didn't see it until Edward stopped and I looked up.

I looked at the cottage in awe, gaping. It ws, to sum it all up in one word, beautiful. Slanted roof, painted white with black shutters and a black door. There were flowers hanging in pots, holly bushes on either side of the door. My hand went to my mouth as I gasped, taking in the wait it glowed under one large light, that looked similar to a street light.

"Oh, my God," I said slowly, looking at it. Edward leaded the way, up the stairs, and into the house, which was gorgeous.

"This," he said, stopping in the foyer and turning to face me, "is our house."

I gaped ever more. "Our house?!" I shrieked in excitment. Edward laughed and nodded. "Oh, my God! Edward... it's beautiful."

"It used to be Esme and Carlisle's before they built our other house. We've all been working on, quietly, over the last little while."

"Oh, my God," I said again. It seemed to be my mantra, the only words that would come out of my mouth right at that moment. "It's so magical."

The house was dimly light, sending a nice orange glow to luminate everything around. I took in the houses high ceilings, the the spiral staircase, the modern furniture. It was amazing. "I'm guessing you like it," Edward said.

"I don't like it," I told him, looking at him. "I love it!"

He grinned. "I hoped so."

"So," I said as I cocked my head to the side. "What did you bring me out here for, anyways?"

His face took on his nervous expression, and it confused me. He bit his lip, digging into his back pocet. "Well," he said as he pulled out something, small enough that his fist could wrap around it, hiding it. "I wanted to ask you something."

I was still confused. "What?"

Then he did.

He got down on one knee, and pulled out the tiny satin box, opening it. "Isabella Swan, will you marry me?"

--

**Very Important!**

**A/N- All I've got to say is HO-LY SHIT! It's been so long – too long – since I've updated, and I feel like just a jerk for making you wait. The wait will NEVER be that long again, as I have set a timeline for when I am updating. It's just, and this is no excuse, I've been busy working on a novel I'm writing, and it's taking up all my free time! But I've set aside days for my novel, and days for my fanficiton, so that'll all work out in the end! Please, review!**


	9. Important Author's Note

**My Novel**

So many of you have messaged me, asking me about my novel and wondering if I could update them whenever I reached a milestone in my novel writing. I thought about it, but realized how difficult it would be to update each person separately. So, I've started a blog that I will be updating everyone 2-3 days, telling you about my writing and how it is going. If you are a writer, or even if you just want to check it out, go to h t t p : / / s h a u n n a t a y l o r . l i v e j o u r n a l . c o m / Just take out all the spaces!

Oh, and _please_ leave a comment! You don't have to be a member! Just go to the bottom right of the entry and click on "Leave a comment". All thoughts are welcome!

Thanks so much!

Shaunna


	10. Chapter 9: Surprise Attack

**Chapter Nine**

I just looked at him for a minute, my eyes scanning over his perfect feature: the sculpted chest, perfect jaw, beautiful golden eyes, fiery lips. I remember each time when he would touch me, hold me. At first, yes, we had gone through a rough spot in our relationship. But he loved me, and he loved Mason and Parker and we loved him back, and to me, what was the only thing that really mattered.

"Yes!"

With a grin, Edward placed the beautiful diamond ring upon my finger, stood up, and then enveloped me in a hug. I burrowed my face into his shoulder, grinning, as he spun me around. When he placed me down, I glanced around at like large foyer, at the large glass chandelier hanging above me.

"This is really our place?"

I looked at him, still smiling widely, and he nodded. "Only the best for my fiancé," he said.

Again, I glanced down at the diamond on my finger. I felt the same tingling feeling that I always get when thinking of Edward erupt throughout my body, like electricity surging throughout a circuit. I wanted to hold him and kiss him and make love to him like I've never done before.

"I love the way that sounds," I said, grinning. "_Fiancé_."

"Shall we get the boys and see if they like it as much as we do?" Edward asked.

I nodded. "Absolutely!"

We slipped in the house and got Mason and Parker without drawing too much attention. I had wondered if Alice had seen mine and Edward's engagement in her head before now, but since she was gone out when we got inside, there was no way of really telling. Besides, even if she had, she would keep it a secret. Alice is like that.

Mason stirred in his sleep a little as I picked him up and placed him on my hip. His head fell onto my shoulder and he rubbed his eyes tiredly with his fists. "Mommy?" he asked, yawning. Edward reached down and picked up little Parker, who stayed asleep as Edward wrapped him up in a blanket and tucked him into his arms. "Where is we going?"

"Mommy and Daddy have a surprised for you and Parker," I told him, kissing his head lightly. "Can you wake up a little and get your coat on?"

Mason yawned again, but then nodded his head. I put him down and he lazily walked over to the other side of the room and grabbed his coat off of the rocking chair. Then he brought it back over to me, and I kneeled down in front of him.

"What is the swurprise?" he asked as I slipped one of his arms into a coat.

"If we told you that, it wouldn't be a surprise," Edward said, as he gently swayed back and forth with Parker in his arms.

I kissed Mason's nose. "Exactly." Then I stood up and reached down. Mason reached up, and I swung him up and placed him back on my hip. He put his head back down on my shoulder and held on tight. "You going to get Parker another few blankets? It's freezing outside."

"Of course." Edward walked over to the change table and placed Parker down. He was wearing a little jumper with red cars on it. Edward took several baby blankets from the crib and wrapped parker up in a swaddle. Then he grabbed Parker's hat and placed it on his head. With one final thick wool blanket, he brought Parker back to his chest.

"Now, let's go get that surprise," I said.

Mason fought sleep the entire way to the house, and Parker awoke halfway there and started to scream. His lungs were clearly getting a major workout.

Mason covered his ears. "Make him stop!"

I laughed and bounced Mason a little. "Parker's just cold, that's all." I placed Mason down and then swung off my jacket. I had a thick wool sweater on underneath, so the cold didn't affect me. I walked over to Edward and extended the blanket. "Wrap him up in his. It should help." When Edward wrapped Parker up, he stopped crying, and instead whimpered the rest of the way to the cottage.

At the front door, Mason looked around. "What's this?"

"This," I said, twisting the knob, "is our new house."

Inside was warm and lit with orange candles, making it look very warm and vibrant. Mason's eyes went wide and he stepped over the threshold. I held his hand, stepping over it with him, Edward behind us.

"We lib here?"

I laughed. "Yes, we live her now, sweetheart."

"I really like it," Mason said, then he yawned again. "But can I go back to sweep now?"

"Just a minute," Edward said with a smile. "We have to show you you're new room. You get a room to yourself now – you don't have to share with Parker anymore!"

"'Kay," Mason said tiredly, rubbing his eyes with his tiny fists. God, how much I loved him. And Parker. And Edward. And the rest of the Cullen's too, for being so supportive and understanding.

Edward lead up upstairs, where it was emaculate and gorgeous, just like downstairs. Lined on the walls were pictures of me and Mason, Parker, and Edward, along with some of the family. Finally, we get to the end of the hallway, where a large white door has the word MASON painted in blue on it. Across from it, the same door is had the name PARKER painted on it in a gorgeous forest green color.

Edward opened Mason's door first, and we all stepped in. It was the same blue as his name on the door, and the furniture was wonderful. He had everything he could need: a crib, dressers, a changing table. I looked at Mason, who was looking around with an approving look on her face.

"Do you like it, Mason?" I asked.

Mason nodded and smiled. "Yes. But can sweep now? Me is tired."

I sat down on the rocking chair and began to help him take off his coat and shoes. I looked at Edward. "It's beautful. It's just screams..."

"Alice," Edward said with a chuckle. "It screams Alice. She designed it. Amazing, huh?" He gently rocked Parker.

"Indeed." I lifted up Mason and helped him remove his pants so he was in his diaper and shirt. The house was warm, so I didn't want to put pajamas on him. I walked over and placed him in his crib, watchng as he smiled and snuggled into the blankets.

"Goodnight, Buddy," Edward said, and I leaned down to kiss him goodnight. Then Edward turned to me and said, "Let's check out Parker's room."

We walked into Parker's room, which was done just as beautifully. I was amazed at how good the rooms were done, and I knew that Alice had to have been a part of it. It was decorated just like Mason's, but instead of a blue theme, the theme was green. It was so nice, and wonderful, and amazing. I loved Edward so much for doing this.

"Let's see if Parker wants to check out his new bed," Edward said, smiling. He walked over and placed Parker in his crib, and Parker just stayed asleep, looking very comfortably and content. I smiled and then leaned down to kiss Parker's cheek.

"While the boys sleep, let's go tell the family our news," I said to Edward.

He nodded excitedly. "It's been really hard to keep my thoughts sheild from Alice. She may already have had the hunch that I was going to propose... but if she did, I daresay she kept it to herself. You know Alice, she isn't really the one to ruin a surprise." Edward chuckled and grabbed my hand, and together we walked downstairs.

Edward called his family, and within a minute they were all the door, asking me how I liked the house.

"I love it," I told them honestly. Everyone smiled big, and Alice hugged me. When we parted, I looked at Edward, who nodded. "We have some news." So far, I kept my left hand covered by my right so that no one would notice. By the look of antisipation on Alice's face, I could tell that she already knew. But that was okay.

"News?" Esme asked, looking a little confused or maybe just playing stubborn.

"Edward proposed tonight," I said, holding up my hand now for everyone to see. "And I said yes, of course." I laughed and so did everyone else. Edward and I were launched into a series of congratulations and compliments on the ring, and I soaked it all in, loving the feeling of being so happy.

I had my babies, my family, and now, finally, I had my Prince Charming.

Carlisle, Jasper and Emmett all congratulated Edward for finally getting up the nerve to ask me to marry him, and they planned on a celebratory hunting trip soon. Alice, Rose, and Esme told me that they would help with the planning of the wedding, and that the honeymoon would be on them. It was, in one word, perfect.

When everyone left, and it was just Edward and I, we decided to lay in bed together and bask in the awesomeness of our life. I cuddled up close to him, feeling our bodies so close together. God, how much I loved this man. I haven't been happier.

"I love you," I told him, kissing his stomach. I trailed kisses from his stomach to his jaw, then from his jaw to his lips. He wrapped his arms around me and gripped me tighter, closer to him, and I felt a fluttering in my stomach. He kissed me passionatly, trailing kisses down my breasts, along my stomach, and then back up before finding my lips and kissing those roughly. I moaned in delight.

"I love you, too, Bella. I always have." Edward kissed me again, and I smiled. "I know I've made mistakes in the past, but I just know that this was mean to be. We were meant to be together forever, and I love you so, so, so much. Don't ever forget that."

"I won't," I said with a giggle. "I'll never forget that."

He chuckled. "Good," he said, then he kissed me again.

We kissed all night, and the next day when daylight broke through the window, I was up and tending to Mason and Parker. After they were both changed, I headed downstairs to the den to have some time with the boys. I was still getting used to the huge house, and felt kind of disoriented at first, but it didn't take long for me to get straight and figure out where everything was. Edward had stashed all their toys in a huge closet off of the den.

I placed a play mat on the floor for Parker, and then set Mason down on the floor with some blocks and toy cars. He loved those, and built up towers before ramming them down with his cars. He was such a boy, and it made me smile.

Edward had told me earlier that he was going to go out and hunt. He had asked me to go, but I told him that I would stay here with the boys instead, and enjoy the first morning in our new house. He smiled and then kissed me, and then was gone.

I was just about to get the boys some food when the doorbell rang. I figured it must've been Alice or someone, so I got up and answered. The door was barely opened before Tanya punched me in the face, knocking me backwards and nearly taking me off of my feet.

I barely had any reaction time, but my vampire instints kicked in quickly enough before she got the chance to take another swing. I reached forward and grabbed her hair, yanking her down with my strength. She had obviously underestimated my abilities as a newborn. She got up in a flash and then was behind me, reaching for my throat. I managed to swivel and kick her hard in the stomach – hard enough for her to let our a scream of agony. But that only lasted a moment before she jumped on top of me, hands still reaching around my neck so she could probably snap my neck and take off my head. For a moment I felt useless and almost gave up, but then I thought about my kids in the other room, and had a sudden burst of energy. They were not going to be anywhere near my death site if I had anything to do about it.

I pushed her off of me, using my legs and arms, just far enough and hard enough so that she didn't damage anything in her landing. I got up in a flash, just as arms wrapped around my waist, stopping me.

"Stop it! Stop it, now!"

It was Edward's voice, and he was talking to Tanya. I still tried to lash forward, but Edward held me back with his strength. Tanya didn't seem to want to stop, but she didn't want to attack me when I was clearly vunerable. Going after me only when I was weak would make her look stupid, and she didn't want that.

I calmed down, and Edward released me slowly.

"'What is going on?" Edward demanded.

Just as Tanya was about to speak, the front door opened, and Alice rushed in. She looked at Edward. "I saw everything," she told him. "I got here as soon as I could."

"Take the children," Edward told her. Alice nodded and then went into the den. She came back with Mason following alongside her, Parker in her arms asleep. Edward gave her a nod, and they shared a moment of communication between the two of them. "Thank you."

Alice left, and I knew my kids were in a safer place.

"Now," Edward said, "I want you to tell me what is going on."

"She attacked me," I said. "When I opened the door, she came in and attacked me."

Edward growled at Tanya. "Is that true?" he demanded.

"Yes," Tanya said unflinchingly.

"Outside," Edward said. "Now."

We all went outside, and the morning air was crisp. Wind blew my hair around my face. I knew Edward just wanted to go outside so we could seperate ourselves from Tanya even more and get her out of my house, but Tanya had other plans.

She went for Edward first. She was fast and momentarily caught him offguard, but it didn't take long for him to fight back. He flicked her off of him, making her fly backwards and land far away. This gave Edward enough time to tell me to help restrain her.

So I did.

When she started to run back, I braced myself, ready for a fight. When she came back and rammed into me, it didn't do what she had wanted. I stayed on both two feet and pushed her away. Edward then grabbed her by the shoulders and flung her on the ground, sitting on her chest, his legs on either side of her stomach. He looked back at me, and said, "The family is on the way down. I told Alice. They will take care of her."

I was shaking, I realized. And, just as Edward had said, the rest of the family came down. Well, minus Esme, who was probably watching the boys back at the house, away from all this madness. Emmett and Jasper got Tanya first, and then Rose did what was needed to stop Tanya. Tanya's body feel limp on the ground, and then it was done.

"We're going to take her body somewhere in the mountains to catch on fire. We don't need any of this around the children."Carlisle nodded at us, and then everyone was gone as quickly as they came here, taking Tanya's dismembered body with them.

"I... I..."

"Sshhh," Edward said soothingly, coming over to bring me into his embrace. "It's okay. It's not your fault. She had it coming. She had to go. She could have hurt the children if she didn't stop her."

I nodded to his chest. "I know. Thank you."

"Anything to keep you safe, my love. You and Mason and Parker, I would do anything for you guys." Edward kissed my forehead. When he parted, he smiled. "Let's go inside. We have a wedding to plan."

**A/N- I AM SO SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING! I feel terrible for not updating in so long, but I'm updating now, and I hope you all like it! I'm not going to give you my list of excuses, as they would probably take up the entire page and bore you to death. I'm just going to say that I'm sorry, and I am committed to finishing this story and As You Wish by January. Or, maybe February. But soon, I promise! Then I can start something new and exciting! Please review!**


	11. Chapter 10: The End

**Chapter Ten**

The wedding, we all decided, couldn't wait.

The dress was hand sewn by Alice, the cake done by Esme and Carlisle –not like we vampires would be eating any – and the Cullen's backyard was decorated by Emmett and Jasper. Edward and I, for the most part, just had to sit back and relax, as this was our wedding and it was decided that we needed a break.

I wanted to do something to make myself seem useful, and Alice had told me that I could do the invitations. Great. But I didn't want to complain, so I spent the entire night one night just sitting there and licking envelopes and writing names. I invited all my Florida friends, my Phoenix friends, and my friends from Forks High, along with some of my close family. I went to the twenty-four hour post office at four in the morning and received a very curious look from the lady at the counter. I sent out the invites, and then went back home and prayed for the best.

"It'll turn out fine," Edward said when I told him of my concerns. "And besides, who cares? We'll be married soon, and then it'll be us against the world. Us against everything else."

I sighed. "I know, I know. But I can't help but feel nervous. What is no one shows up?"

"They will," he said reassuringly. "They will."

I smiled then, because of his confidence and love and support. I kissed him passionately, and he kissed me back equally forcefully. I felted at his touch. He trailed his hand down along the side of my body and rested it at my hip, stepping forward. Were we were standing in the den was warm, made even warmed with the hotness of his touch. Just as I was about to kiss him again, Parker started to cry.

"Great timing, Parker," I said, looking down at the baby in his playpen, which we had set up in the den while we watched a movie. Mason was upstairs in his room, long asleep for the night. I scooped down and picked him up, rocking him. In a few minutes, he was back to sleep, and I put him upstairs in his room. When I walked back down, Edward practically ambushed me with kisses. My hands trailed his well-defined abs and he smiled through the kiss.

We made love on the couch, and then prepared for the day ahead of us.

Charlie and Renee were surprised that the wedding was so soon and short notice, but they saw it coming ever since Edward and I got back together. Renee agreed to help and gave me permission to take her wedding dress and alter it a little. When she arrived from Florida with all of my other friends, she handed me the dress, and I gave it to Alice to fix up and make more modern. Alice did just that later that night by cutting off the huge sleeves and making it strapless. It hugged my tight until it is my hips, where it flowed off of my body nicely until it hit the floor. I planned to wear sneakers.

I knew getting married on a whim to most people was stupid and unthinkable. But for Edward and myself, getting married after being engaged for only a few days was... expected. If we had eternity to spend together, why not start it right away?

Alice and Rose helped me get ready. Upstairs in Alice's room, Rose and Alice helped me into my dress. As Rose did my hair and Alice did my makeup – something natural, nothing dramatic – I thought about how lucky I was to have everyone I loved in my life. Edward and I were about to exchange vows in the presence of Mason and Parker, and everything was just so utterly perfect.

I am so lucky!

The wedding was held outside in the Cullen's backyard, which Esme and Carlisle had spent the afternoon working on, decorating it so it looked amazing and adding white chairs. Flowers were everywhere, and as the wedding guests started to show up, I got more and more anxious. I wanted to get married to Edward, the man of my dreams, and now it's going to actually happen.

Just when Alice finished my blush, there was a knock on the door. It was Charlie. "Ready, Bella?" he asked. I had asked him to walk me down the aisle, and he agreed. "This is probably the biggest day of your life."

I took a deep, unnecessary breath. "Yes."

Looping my arm through his, I looked back at Rose and Alice one last time and smiled. Then we began to walk.

Edward looked stunning as always, as did Carlisle, Emmett and Jasper. Alice and Rose – using the lightening speed we all possessed – were already in their spots at the bridesmaids by the time Charlie and I were at the beginning of the aisle.

If I could cry, I think I would. Mason was standing by Edward, holding a little pillow with a ring on it. Parker was in Carlisle's arms, too small to do anything. But he was there and that was all that mattered to me.

Charlie let me go and kissed my cheek, and then it was just me and Edward. Or so it seemed.

"You look beautiful," Edward commented, his gaze looking over me. "As always."

"And you are as stunning as always," I whispered with a smile. "I love you."

"I love you, too," Edward said.

The priest positioned his book in his hands and looked at me and Edward. "Ready to begin?"

Edward chuckled. "I've been waiting for this day forever," he said, and we both giggled a little. No one understood how true that was.

**.

We were married.

And it felt amazing. Joyful. Incredible. Fantastic. I could go on forever with a list of words that described how happy I was to finally be a Cullen, to be married, and to have the family I've always dreamed of when I was a little girl. I was the princess and Edward was my prince, the one who swept me off of my feet.

Alice had agreed to watch the babies while Edward and I enjoyed our first night together as a married couple. Normally, newly married couples would go off and do something romantic, like a honeymoon, but Edward and I decided that we'd just like to stay at our own home, alone, to be together without any interruptions. Being next to Edward was amazing, and as we lay in our king sized bed, talking about the day and how lucky we were to have each other, I couldn't help but grin from ear to ear.

"Someone's happy," Edward noted as he kissed my temple. I giggled, and he added, "Must be the newly married bliss everyone's talking about."

"Maybe," I said. "But I think it's just the fact that I married the most amazing man in the entire world. And I have him forever. Literally."

He grinned too, because this was true. Us being vampires meant there was no way that we could get torn apart, not unless someone was out to kill one of us. And the vampires in Italy were fine now. Tanya was gone. Everything was going to be perfect.

"Hey, Edward?" I asked after a moment of silence.

Edward propped up on his elbows and looked at me. "Yeah?" he asked, his bare, chiselled chest taunting me in the light peach light of our bedside lamp.

"Kiss me."

I didn't have to tell him twice. He kissed me softly yet roughly at the same time, with enough heat to keep a small town warm for a winter. He cupped the side of my face, then his kisses trailed down my neck, my collarbone, my breasts... Each kiss was like setting a part of my body on fire. I ached for him. I wanted him now, as my husband, my children's father, the man of my dreams. And he was going to oblige.

The silk lingerie that Alice had given me as a wedding gift was on the floor in a matter of minutes, as where Edward's pyjama bottoms. He touched me lightly, each touch leaving me warm and tingly, and whispered in my ear, "Isabella Marie Cullen. My wife."

I looked at him in the eyes, those gorgeous golden orbs, and said, "Edward Anthony Masen Cullen. My husband."

I knew, from that day forward, we'd be together. And together, there would be no need to be alone.

The end.

**A/N: I'M SORRY IM SORRY IM SORRY for not updating... I really am, but I just wanted to let you know that, as of now, this is the end of Together: No Need to be Alone. A lot went on in my three stories Alone, Need, and Together: No Need to be Alone, and I know I probably haven't clued up all the loose end there are in the story. Just PM me or leave in the review something you would like clarified and I will do that! Thank you so much for sticking with me!**


	12. Important Author's Note: Epilogue?

**Epilogue?**

As many of you know, Together: No Need to be Alone is completed, meaning the trilogy is done! It's been a long time coming, and I'm so grateful for those of you who have stuck with me since I first started out her on fanficiton. That being said, I'm so, so sad to see these stories come to an end! I really wish I could have dragged it out for years and years... but I figured that wouldn't be a smart thing, since you all have been waiting – albeit patiently – for me to update.

So I've been thinking about creating yet another story based upon Alone, Need, and Together. It would take place years after Together finished, when Mason is about seventeen and Parker is sixteen. It would be about them changing the boys into vampires, and what the boys are going through. I was thinking about having it in Mason's perspective, since he was really the whole reason this story came about. Let me know what you think! I'm writing the first chapter now just in case I get a lot of people wanting the story. That way, it's ready to post. It would be called Alone, Need, Together: The Epilogue. Please, PM me with ideas or comments, and review this so I know what you think!

Thanks so much everyone!

Shaunna


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